The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday rejected the Muslim side’s objection to maintainability of civil suits fled by the Hindu side seeking restoration of the temple at the disputed structure. The court said suits fled by the Hindu worshippers and deity are not barred by the Places of Worship Act, 1991.

The High Court considered the civil suit filed by the Hindu side in the Varanasi court as worthy of hearing. The High Court rejected the arguments of the Muslim side.

The court said that the Gyanvapi compound can have either a Muslim character or a Hindu character and it can not be decided at the stage of framing issues.

“The suit affects two major communities of the county…we direct trail court to expeditiously decide the suit in 6 months,” the High Court said.

The petitions filed by the Muslim side had also challenged a Varanasi court order of April 8, 2021 to conduct a comprehensive survey of the disputed Gyanvapi structure. On December 8, the High Court had reserved judgment after hearing the counsels of the petitioners and the respondent.