The Ayodhya Development Authority (ADA) has rejected the plan submitted for the construction of a mosque in Dhannipur village, which was proposed as judicial compensation for the demolition of the Babri Masjid under the 2019 Supreme Court verdict.

The authority cited the absence of no-objection certificates (NoCs) from several government departments as the reason for its decision, news agency PTI  reported.

The mosque project, located around 25 km from Ayodhya town in Sohawal tehsil, was part of the five-acre land allotment made to the state Sunni Central Waqf Board in line with the top court’s directive. The mosque trust had filed its application on June 23, 2021.

Responding to an RTI query, the ADA stated in a letter dated September 16 that the application was turned down due to the lack of mandatory clearances from departments including Public Works, Pollution Control, Civil Aviation, Irrigation, Revenue, Municipal Corporation, and Fire Services.

In August 2020, then Ayodhya district magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha had formally transferred possession of the Dhannipur plot to the Waqf Board. According to the RTI response, the mosque trust also deposited Rs 4,02,628 as application and scrutiny fees for the project, PTI noted.

“The Supreme Court mandated the land for the mosque and the Uttar Pradesh government allotted the plot. I am speechless why the government departments have not given no-objection and why the authority has rejected the mosque’s plan,” mosque trust secretary Athar Husain said, reacting to the development.

He further explained that the fire department, during its site inspection, flagged issues with the approach road, insisting it must be at least 12 metres wide to meet safety norms for the proposed mosque and hospital complex.

At present, the road is only about six metres wide, narrowing to just four metres at the mosque’s main approach.

“Apart from the fire department’s objection, I have no idea about the objections of other departments,” Husain added.