Construction in Dholka mosque: FIR stays

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court on Wednesday refused to entertain a request to quash charges against the administrators of Dholka's 15th century Bahlol Khan Gazi Mosque for putting up construction without the prior permission from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
In this case, the management of the mosque had a water tank constructed for ablutions on the mosque premises.When the petitioners found the HC was not inclined to quash the proceedings, they withdrew their petition.
Any construction within a 100 metre radius of a listed monument is prohibited and for any repair or renovation work in this restricted zone, prior permission from the central archaeological authority is a must. But this permission was not obtained and ASI officials lodged a complaint against three administrators for the violation of this rule.
When they moved the HC for quashing of the FIR, the high court was of the view that it did not appear to be malicious proceedings. The court allowed the investigation to go further.
Bahlol Khan mosque is one of 65 monuments listed by the ASI in the Ahmedabad district, where the conservation body has filed numerous police complaints regarding illegal constructions in the restricted zone of protected monuments.
The precinct of Shah-e-Alam Roza has been one of the most encroached upon regulated zones in the city. The ASI has filed more than 30 complaints against various people and builders for putting up constructions. Still construction goes on unabated in the absence of any police action. Another ASI-protected structure - Pir Kamal Mosque - has a similar problem where violation of conservation laws are apparent.