JAIPUR MUSLIMS YET TO GET LAND FOR MOSQUE, SCHOOL

The Rajasthan Government has refused to part with a piece of land at a prime location in the city which earlier it had allotted to the Muslim community for construction of a school during its previous tenure in June 2003. When the allottees protested, it insisted on getting the District Magistrate’s clearance which is not needed for any educational institution. The State Government not only turned down repeated requests to hand over the 1,000 square metre land adjacent to a mosque site in Mansarovar locality, but also moved the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission last October challenging the lower court’s decree to give possession to the allottees. The distressed Mansarovar Muslim Welfare Society (MMWS) is mired in a protracted legal battle both for the school and the mosque. The Jaipur Collector has not given permission for construction of the mosque since September 2002, when its land was handed over to Muslims after allotment by the Rajasthan Housing Board with the due process.