Indian Hindus begin prayers at disputed mosque

VARANASI, India: Hindu worshippers on Thursday began praying inside a disputed mosque in the Indian city of Varanasi just hours after a court order gave them the go-ahead at the deeply sensitive site, media reported.

The Gyanvapi mosque in the city of Varanasi is one of several Islamic houses of worship that Hindu activists, backed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi´s party, have sought for decades to reclaim. A Varanasi court ruled Wednesday that Hindu worshippers could pray in the building´s basement, and ordered authorities to “make proper arrangements” for worshippers within a week.

Media reported that family members of Hindu priests started praying in the mosque´s basement in the early hours of Thursday morning. The Gyanvapi mosque was built in the 17th century during the Muslim Mughal empire in a city where Hindus from across the country cremate relatives by the Ganges river. Hindu worshippers believe the mosque replaced a temple to the Hindu deity Shiva.

Last month, India´s official archaeological agency said a survey of the site appeared to corroborate the belief that it was originally home to a temple, according to local news reports. Emboldened right-wing Hindu groups have laid claim to several Muslim sites of worship they say were built atop ancient temples during Mughal rule.