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The Supreme Court connected Friday (October 17, 2025) upheld an bid of the Gujarat High Court permitting the partial demolition of the implicit 400-year-old Mancha Masjid analyzable successful Ahmedabad to facilitate a road-widening project, holding that the measurement was undertaken successful the nationalist involvement and did not infringe upon the close to spiritual freedom.
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi noted that lone a information of the vacant onshore and an adjoining level were to beryllium cleared, portion the mosque’s main operation would stay untouched. The Court besides observed that a temple, a commercialized unit, and a residential spot had likewise been earmarked for demolition arsenic portion of the aforesaid civic project.
“In presumption of the categorical basal taken by the State authorities and the determination of the High Court that lone a portion of the vacant onshore and a level are to beryllium demolished, we spot nary crushed to interfere with the judgment, particularly erstwhile a temple, a commercialized and a residential spot person besides been earmarked for demolition for roadworthy widening,” the Bench said successful its order.
The Court, however, near unfastened the question of whether the tract qualified arsenic a waqf property, clarifying that the contented could beryllium adjudicated successful due proceedings for the intent of determining compensation.
The Bench further observed that Article 25 of the Constitution, guaranteeing the state of religion, was not attracted successful the contiguous case, arsenic the quality was fundamentally astir spot and compensation. “A bona fide nationalist interest, which is beneficial to the full city, is beyond immoderate doubt,” it remarked.
Appearing for the Mancha Masjid Trust, advocator Warisha Farasat disputed the State’s assertion that the mosque would stay unaffected. She stressed that it was a 400-year-old practice operation and urged the Bench to support the supplication hall. “Since it is simply a 400-year-old structure, the supplication hallway should beryllium spared,” she said.
Ms. Farasat further argued that the municipal authority’s bid failed to mention immoderate genuine nationalist involvement and was truthful arbitrary. She contended that the mosque, registered nether the Mancha Masjid Trust, was a protected waqf property.
Rejecting these contentions, the Bench reiterated that the mosque operation would stay intact. “They (municipal authorities) person besides dismantled a temple, 1 commercialized property, and 1 residential house, which is an contented of utmost hardship. All this is happening for the betterment of the city,” the Court said, adding that the petitioners’ grievance yet related to compensation.
In its October 3 order, a Division Bench of the High Court comprising Justices A.S. Supehia and L.S. Pirzada had refused to restrain the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation from carrying retired partial demolitions adjacent the mosque located successful Saraspur. The High Court had recovered that the process nether the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949, had been duly complied with and that different religious, residential, and commercialized properties were besides affected by the road-widening project.
“We person noticed that determination are a fig of properties, including commercialized properties, residential arsenic good arsenic temples, person besides been included for demolition owed to widening of the road,” the High Court had said.
Believed to person been built during the Mughal era, the Mancha Masjid is regarded arsenic an important spiritual and taste landmark for the section Muslim community. Over the centuries, it has undergone respective renovations and is formally registered nether the Mancha Masjid Trust.
