Varanasi court allows Hindu side to worship in Gyanvapi mosque basement

A Varanasi court has allowed the Hindu side to conduct worship inside the sealed basement of the disputed Gyanvapi mosque. As per the court order, the Hindu devotees can now offer prayers at 'Vyas Ka Tekhana', a sealed area inside Varanasi's Gyanvapi mosque.

The court, during its hearing earlier in the day, also directed the district administration to make the necessary arrangements for the same in the next seven days.

While speaking to reporters, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing the Hindu side, said, "Hindu side allowed to offer prayers at 'Vyas Ka Tekhana'. The District Administration will have to make arrangements within 7 days. Everyone will now have the right to perform puja". 

"I see Varansi court's recent order as historic as the order given by Justice Krishna Mohan Pandey in 1983, who ordered the opening of locks of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya," advocate Vishnu Jain said.

JM Pandey, a Gorakhpur resident, was the first judge on whose orders the lock of the Ram Mandir was opened for worship.