The Indian History Congress (IHC) has raised its voice for the late medieval age Sunehri Masjid in New Delhi, facing demolition. The IHC has asked for the mosque not to be demolished. A resolution to this effect was passed by the IHC at its conclave. The ace body of historians issued a statement in favour of the mosque, stating, “The Indian History Congress strongly urges the New Delhi Municipal Corporation [NDMC] to not go ahead with its proposal to remove this important historical structure.”
The resolution came in response to a public notification issued by the NDMC announcing its application to the Heritage Conservation Committee (HCC) to demolish the Sunheri Bagh Mosque to ensure sustainable mobility of the traffic. Regarding this proposal of demolition, the Indian History Congress objected, stating, “The Sunehri Bagh Mosque is a Mughal-era structure that is still in use. According to the definitions of Grade III buildings, Clause 1.12, Annexure II of the Unified Building Bylaws, buildings included in this category are those of ‘of importance for townscape; that evoke architectural aesthetics, sociological interest… contribute to determining the character of the locality and can be representative of the lifestyle of a particular community of the region’.…indeed, there has been a constant attempt to erode our medieval architectural heritage in recent times.”
‘Integral feature’
The history body felt, “Apart from its intrinsic importance as a relic from an era of the city’s history, its subsequent history during the construction of New Delhi is also of relevance. Its location on the roundabout is evocative of the town plan of New Delhi which sought to incorporate many historic structures, particularly those in active use as features of the new city plan instead of demolishing them.” The IHC concluded, “The proposal to remove the roundabout is unacceptable and an unwise modification of an important feature of the street plan of New Delhi of which roundabouts are an integral and essential feature.” Incidentally, since as early as 1984, the Indian History Congress has constantly made its position clear on the important issue of protection of monuments.
“All buildings, whatever their nature, if over 200 years old, should be strictly protected, under the terms of the Protection of Monuments Act, and their character, if these are religious structures, should not be altered; and, where worship has ceased, it should not be restored. It feels that this is also the obligation imposed on the Archaeological Survey of India by the Protection of Monuments Act, and other existing legislation. It is, therefore, incumbent on all concerned to strictly follow the principle here set forth and not seek now to alter the structure and character of any monument, religious or secular. This appeal is particularly necessary in view of certain judicial proceedings now taking place under considerable publicity, with regard to mosques at Mathura and Varanasi,” the body said through a written statement.
