Supreme Court picks plot for Friday prayers near Bhojshala

The Supreme Court on Thursday, July 30, 2026, specified a plot of land adjacent to the disputed Bhojshala-Kamal Maula complex in Dhar, Madhya Pradesh, where Muslims can offer Friday prayers, resolving a dispute over the implementation of its earlier interim order. A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant directed state authorities to permit prayers at the identified site, known as Khasra number 596, every Friday between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The court acted on an application from the Muslim side, which argued that a site allocated by the district administration following the court's July 14 interim order was located approximately 1.3 kilometers away from the complex. Senior Advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, representing the Muslim petitioners, contended that this distance violated the court's directive to provide a space "adjacent to or near" the disputed site. He presented several alternative plots of Waqf property adjoining the complex as more suitable options.

During the hearing, the state government, represented by Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj, emphasized that its primary concern was maintaining law and order, citing potential issues with crowd movement and access...