Construction of proposed mosque in Ayodhya likely to begin in May

Construction of a proposed mosque in Ayodhya mandated by the Supreme Court in its Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case verdict is expected to begin in May, people associated with the project have said.

The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation Trust, which is tasked with building the mosque in Ayodhya's Dhannipur, also intends to appoint in-charges in different states starting in February to raise funds.

Settling a fractious issue that goes back more than a century, the Supreme Court in a historic verdict on November 9, 2019, backed the construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya and ruled that an alternative plot be found for a mosque in the Hindu holy town.

The construction of the mosque is yet to begin even as the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple is expected to take place on January 22, 2024.

Chief trustee of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation Zufar Farooqui said, "The final design of the mosque is likely to be ready by mid-February and it will then go for administrative approval. The site office will be set up in the complex in February."

"It is expected that we will be in a position to start construction of the mosque in May next year," Farooqui, who is also the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, told PTI.

Farooqui said the construction of the Mohammad Bin Abdullah Ayodhya Mosque is getting delayed due to the fresh formalities after "drastic" changes were made in the design of the mosque and financial constraints.

The initial design of the mosque was based on those built in India. However, it was rejected and a new design was prepared. The mosque will be built on 40,000 square feet instead of the earlier 15,000 square feet, he said.

The IICF had earlier decided to shift to a grand design for the mosque similar to the one adopted in the Middle Eastern countries.

Asked about the possibility of a crowdfunding campaign to overcome the financial constraints, Farooqui said the trust will take a call on it by February.

"Crowdfunding is a huge task and very difficult to handle. What we are trying to do is to give responsibility to our people in different states to raise funds for the project," he said.

"We will work in a manner to ensure both transparency and accountability," he added.

Currently, the Mumbai team associated with the trust is working on this and it is expected that within one-and-a-half months, we will have sufficient funds, Farooqui said.

However, Farooqui did not completely rule out the possibility of crowdfunding and said that if needed, online donations would be sought from the people willing to donate.

He also asserted that the construction of the mosque was getting delayed more so due to the changes in the design.

IICF Secretary Athar Hussain said that the trust will build a hospital, library, community kitchen and a museum along with the mosque on the land given by the government.

Talks have been held with a group from Mumbai and they have been made in-charge of the construction committee.

Asked when the construction will be completed, Hussain said it will depend on the availability of funds.

On the orders of the Supreme Court, the government had given five acres of land in Dhannipur, Ayodhya to the Sunni Central Waqf Board Uttar Pradesh to construct the mosque.

The board then formed the IICF for the construction of the mosque and other facilities like a community kitchen, a research institute, a hospital and a museum.

A map of the proposed mosque and other buildings was submitted to the Ayodhya Development Authority in 2021. It was approved in March this year.