Supreme Court Stays New Construction Or Renovation Works In Mehrauli Archaeological Park
The Supreme Court has stayed any new construction or renovation work at the centuries-old religious structures inside the Mehrauli Archaeological Park, New Delhi including the 13th Century Ashiq Allah Dargah and Chillagah of Baba Farid, the revered Sufi saint.
The Court was hearing a plea filed by one Zameer Ahmed Jumlana seeking protection of the religious structures inside the said archaeological park from demolition.
The two-Judge Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar ordered, “The ASI has submitted an interim status report. The original structure as it existed has to be ascertained and verified. List on April 28. The ASI will have to submit further status reports and the parties can file their objections/submissions. There shall not be any construction at the existing site."
The Bench said that for the renovation, permission under the existing laws would be needed.
Senior Advocate Nidhesh Gupta referred to the Status Report of the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) and said that a historical monument found there was built around 700 years ago.
While asking the ASI to prepare a site plan to ensure no further encroachment, the CJI said “people keep encroaching and putting up shops to earn money.”
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) K M Nataraj said, “Let us find out which are built newly and which are old."
The ASI had earlier said that two structures inside the archaeological park bore religious significance as Muslim devotees paid daily visits to the Ashiq Allah Dargah and Chillagah of Sufi saint Baba Farid. The ASI submitted that the tomb was close to the citadel of Prithviraj Chauhan and fell within the regulated zone of 200 metres according to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act.
"Both structures are frequently visited. Devotees light lamps at the Ashiq Dargah for fulfilment of wishes. They visit Chillagah to get rid of evil spirits and bad omen. The place is also associated with the religious sentiment and faith of a particular religious community", the ASI report stated.
Jumlana, in his plea, said that the Delhi Development Authority had planned the demolition of the structures in the name of removing encroachments without assessing their historical significance.
The Petitioner approached the Apex Court against a Delhi High Court Order passed on February 8, 2025, which said that Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena-led Religious Committee could consider the matter. He had contended that the said committee was not an appropriate forum to decide the antiquity of a structure.
With PTI Inputs