Sunni Central Waqf Board Forms Trust to Build Mosque in Ayodhya

Ayodhya’s Dhanipur village, where the new mosque will be built.

(Photo: Aroop Mishra/The Quint)

The Sunni Central Waqf Board has set up a trust named ‘Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation’ for building a Mosque and other public facilities in village Dhannipur in Ayodhya.

This is in keeping with the Supreme Court’s Babri Masjid case judgment, in which the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government had been instructed to allot 5 acres of land to the board.

As of February, Ayodhya’s Dhanipur village neither had a hospital, nor a senior secondary school, nor any other amenities.

A press release issued by the Sunni Central Waqf Board on Wednesday, 29 July, read:

“The Board has created a Trust named, Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation, for building the Mosque and other facilities for the benefit of general public.”   

Members of the Trust

The trust, according to the press release, is slated to have a maximum of 15 trustees. Presently, nine trustees have been selected for the job:

1. Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board through its Chief Executive Officer - Founder Trustee
2. Imran Ahmad - Member
3. Zufar Ahmad Faruqi - Chief Trustee/President
4. Adnan Farrukh Shah - Vice President
5. Athar Hassain - Secretary
6. Faez Aftab - Treasurer
7. Mohammad Junaid Siddiqui - Member
8. Sheikh Sauduzzaman - Member
9. Mohammad Rashid - Member

Six trustees will also be co-opted by the trust, and the secretary of the trust, Athar Hussain, has been appointed the official spokesperson.

Dhanipur Village

Dhanipur village was selected, in February 2020, by the UP Government as the site where the mosque would be built. Three sites were looked at before Dhanipur was declared the final choice.

Rakesh Yadav, sarpanch of the village, had told The Quint that they were very happy that their village had been chosen.

“Now, our village is famous. It is famous across India already. We are very happy. What is happening here is historic.”   

Rakesh Yadav

The residents of Dhanipur had told The Quint, in February, that they were hoping the construction of the mosque in their village would bring them opportunities to earn.

“The construction of the mosque means development for us. When they build this mosque, they absolutely must build a hospital as well. There is barely any development in the area.”

Hari Shankar, Resident of Dhanipur   

The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board had reportedly said, in February, that they will build a mosque as well as an Indo-Islamic research centre, a hospital and a library on the five-acre plot allotted to it following the Supreme Court's Ayodhya verdict.

Meanwhile, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday, 25 July, offered prayers at the site of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and took stock of preparations, ahead of foundation laying of the temple on 5 August.