Overview
- Hindu organisations called a half-day bandh on Tuesday and many markets closed as protesters accused the district administration and ASI of not fully implementing court directions about the Bhojshala-Kamal Maula complex.
- Local leaders say the core disagreement is over which survey plot the Supreme Court designated for Friday namaz, with the administration using Survey No. 612 while some Hindu groups insist the court named Survey No. 596.
- The legal background is that the Indore Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in May recognised the site as a Saraswati temple and granted year-round Hindu worship, and the Supreme Court later refused to stay that verdict while ordering an open space be provided for Friday prayers and directing the ASI to maintain status quo.
- Police enforced a heavy security presence, described the situation as peaceful, and received a memorandum from protesters at the Collectorate while Friday prayers have continued at the administration-arranged site near the complex.
- The dispute stays alive in court with a Supreme Court hearing set for October 29 and the ongoing standoff could delay local development plans, constrain access routes for worshippers, and keep communal tensions on the ground high.