Latest News | Pravin Togadia Welcomes Varanasi Court Verdict Allowing Puja in Gyanvapi Cellar

Mathura (UP), Jan 31 (PTI) Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad president Pravin Togadia on Wednesday welcomed a Varanasi court's order that a priest can perform prayers before the idols in a cellar of the Gyanvapi Masjid.

Talking to reporters here, Togadia said that puja used to take place there until 1993.

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The Varanasi district court on Wednesday ruled that a priest can perform prayers before the idols in a cellar of the Gyanvapi Masjid, a significant development in the legal battle over the mosque adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple.

The prayers will be conducted -- apparently at regular intervals -- by a "pujari" nominated by the Kashi Vishwanath temple trust and the petitioner who has claimed his grandfather offered puja at the cellar up to December 1993.

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Muslim side counsel Mumtaz Ahmed said they will challenge the order in the high court.

Reacting to the verdict, Togadia said they hoped that like the Ram temple in Ayodhya, a grand temple will be built in Varanasi.

He said the Ram temple in Ayodhya has been built using the hard-earned money of those who donated for its construction since the launch of the Ram Janmabhoomi Movement in 1989.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)