Muslims lament loss of identity amid rising attacks on mosques in India

In the wake of last month's ruling by the Varanasi High Court allowing Hindus to conduct prayers within the 17th-century Gyanvapi Mosque in Uttar Pradesh (UP), a palpable sense of sadness and helplessness has pervaded the city's Muslim community.

The court made its determination on the basis that a Hindu temple had once existed on the site.

Hindus jubilantly celebrated the court's decision, but Muslims like 53-year-old Muqeem Ahmad found themselves grappling with profound frustration.

Walking with a bowed head and a heavy heart, Ahmad struggled to contain his emotions, his eyes showing the heavy disappointment he felt because of the court’s decision. Speaking to TRT World, he said:

"I think it’s high time for the government or even the Supreme Court to allow Hindus to openly demolish mosques, build temples, and ask us to vacate the places without resorting to hollow arguments about law and constitutional rights."

Ahmad said he feared that the recently inaugurated Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, built on the site of the former Babri Mosque, which was torn down by Hindus in 1992, has emboldened right-wing Hindus.

They now aim to claim ownership of two other historical mosques in India – the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi and the Shahi Eidgah Mosque in Mathura. This signals potential peril for Muslims and puts these buildings at risk.

Attacks on mosques in India have escalated since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strengthened its power in 2019.

Among the promises outlined in their election manifesto was the revocation of Article 370 in Indian-Administered Kashmir and the construction of the Ram Mandir on the disputed land of the Babri Mosque, both of which have been fulfilled by the ruling party.

These actions have garnered satisfaction among the country's Hindu majority, potentially securing the party's hold on power for a third term in the upcoming election in May.

Despite opposition from Muslim organisations, the judiciary's rulings and subsequent actions have left little room for safeguarding these sites. Muslims constitute 17 percent of India’s population.

Earlier this month, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath delivered a resolute speech in the state assembly, leaving no room for ambiguity about the aspirations of the Hindu right.

Adityanath, renowned for his decisive actions against Muslims in the UP, talked about grand plans for Shahi Eidgah Mosque in Mathura and the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi – the remaining targets on the Hindutva agenda.

Hindu claimants argue that these sites were once grand temples dedicated to Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva before their purported destruction by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

Mosques under threat

The UP is home to several recent high-profile mosque demolitions.

Last January, bulldozers tore down the historic Shahi Mosque in Prayagraj city as part of a road-widening project. This demolition occurred despite the mosque's committee filing a petition in a local court to halt the city's plans.

And in November 2022, a 300-year-old mosque in UP’s Muzaffarnagar district was razed to make room for a highway.

Meanwhile, another significant mosque, the Shamsi Jama Mosque in the city of Budaun, became embroiled in a dispute in 2022 when a case was filed by a local Hindu farmer, supported by the right-wing Hindu nationalist group Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM).

They claimed that the mosque, which is 800 years old and a national heritage site, was illegally built on the site of a demolished temple. The fate of the mosque remains uncertain as the case awaits resolution in the courts.

The assault on mosques and shrines in Uttar Pradesh is part of a broader trend also observed in India’s capital. Last month, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) demolished a 600-year-old mosque in the Mehrauli area of the city, citing encroachment — a move that drew sharp criticism from political and heritage activists across India. Many questioned how a structure with such historical significance could be labelled as encroachment.

These demolitions coincide with a campaign by Hindutva groups targeting Sufi shrines and mosques in other states such as Uttarakhand, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh.

These incidents underscore growing concerns about religious tolerance and communal harmony in India, revealing a disturbing pattern of targeting Muslim religious sites under the pretext of addressing alleged land encroachments.

It's not just mosques. Last year, authorities demolished five revered shrines in the heart of Delhi, including Dargah Sunehri Baba and Dargah Hazrat Qutb Shah Chisti, located outside the headquarters of the Election Commission of India on Ashoka Road.

Two of these demolished shrines were among a list of 123 Muslim religious sites in New Delhi embroiled in a legal dispute between the central government and the Muslim Waqf Board of Delhi.

Last August, the Mamun-Bhanja shrine at Faiz Road, Paharganj, was covertly demolished under the cover of night, due to alleged land encroachment. The Muslim community in the vicinity continues to mourn its loss, with caretakers grappling with emotional trauma triggered by the disappearance of a place that once provided solace.

Muslims allege that most of the demolitions were carried out without prior notice to the managing bodies, resulting in the loss of mosques and shrines that held significance for the community for years.

This has exacerbated fear among Muslims, who are already living under constant threat due to increasing anti-Muslim sentiment and physical attacks by right-wing Hindu groups.

Losing identity

Asaduddin Owaisi, a prominent Muslim politician and parliamentarian, recently accused the Modi government of attempting to erode the cultural identity of Indian Muslims. In a speech to India’s Parliament this month, he said, "They want to snatch every mosque from us, our identity from us."

He also posed a critical question to the PM: "What message are you sending to 17 crore Muslims? Civilisation cannot be rewritten by hatred, history cannot be corrected by demolition."

He added, "(Modi) wanted to be immortalised in history for transforming India into a Hindu nation, but I implore the people of India to reject this divisive ideology."

For many Muslims in India, the most troubling aspect of the mosque demolitions is the growing intolerance the actions represent.

Speaking to TRT World, Omar, a young Muslim college student who asked to go only by his first name for fear of reprisal, said there appears to be an open threat to people like him these days.

"(The demolitions) signal that Muslims are destined to face similar consequences with no alternative escape from this dire reality."

He added, "Earlier, such incidents were perceived as isolated ones, often containing concealed messages for the broader community."

But the recent surge in violence against Muslim places of worship sends the unequivocal message "that Muslims are second-class citizens and compelled to accept the dominance of the majority."

Citing a recent incident from Chhattisgarh, he stated that the condition of Muslims in the country has reached a point where an imam of a mosque, who was nearly lynched by Hindu mobs, sought help from the police.

Instead of offering assistance, they jailed him for days. "These actions are evidently backed by the state, indicative of a deliberate agenda to keep us in fear," Omar lamented.

Violating the law

The demolitions and attacks on Muslim religious sites have become so commonplace in India that they no longer evoke shock.

Speaking to TRT World, Zafarul-Islam Khan, ex-chairman of Delhi Minorities Commission, said that the successful replacement of the Babri Mosque with the Ram temple whetted the appetite of Hindu zealots.

Since then, they have revived their old claims for many well-known old mosques around the country. "They have a list of 3,000 such mosques, which means the process will go on for thousands of years," he said.

However, he believes this plan is in clear violation of a 1991 law protecting religious places in India as they stood upon the founding of the country on Aug. 15, 1947.

For him the actions of demolitions are another method of erasing Muslim religious places by bulldozing them out of a sudden claim that they are "illegal."

Speaking to TRT World, Mridula Mukherjee, a renowned historian and author of the book RSS, shed light on the significance of the Places of Worship Act of 1991, emphasising its pivotal role in preserving the religious status quo.

"Except for the Babri Masjid, all other religious sites and buildings were to maintain their status as of August 15, 1947. This law was enacted to prevent disputes and political manipulation of controversies."

She added that the issue is not one of right or wrong, but of legality, "It's important to note that current events are in violation of this law."

Addressing the complexity of architectural heritage, Mukherjee highlighted the intertwined nature of Hindu and Islamic motifs in historical buildings. "There has been significant blending of architectural styles over the years, making it challenging to categorise structures solely based on religious affiliation. It's convenient to exploit such issues during elections to stoke emotions."

She called for unified criticism from all sections of society to uphold the rule of law and provide assurance to minority communities. "Counter-mobilisation is the answer."

But Varanasi's Muqeem Ahmad said he worried that efforts by the Muslim community to safeguard their houses of worship are an exercise in futility.

"There is a law that guarantees our religious sites and practices, but the present scenario of the Indian judiciary seems to compromise the constitutional right granted for us. It’s a bloodless genocide."