No immediate relief for Gyanvapi mosque committee

Prayagraj/Varanasi: The Gyanvapi Masjid committee on Friday failed to get any immediate relief from the Allahabad High Court on its petition challenging a lower court order that has allowed Hindu prayers in a cellar of the mosque in Varanasi.

A large number of people offered Friday prayers at the mosque while a bandh was observed in Varanasi's Muslim-dominated areas against the January 31 district court order.

Hindu devotees exiting the adjacent Kashi Vishwanath temple were also filing past an opening through which they could catch a glimpse of the cellar.

The area was earlier covered with tin sheets which were removed on Wednesday night.

The Varanasi dis - trict court on Wednesday ruled that a priest can perfor m prayers before the idols in the cellar of the Gyanvapi Masjid, a significant development in the legal battle over the mosque. (PTI)