Babri Masjid blot to India, crime to call it mosque: Shia Waqf Board chief Waseem Rizvi

In a controversial statement, Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board chief Waseem Rizvi has targetted Babri Masjid and accused it of being a blot to the country. He said that it is a crime to call "that blot as a mosque".

Rizvi said that during the excavation, a square made of bricks was found at the bottom of the 50 pillars of the temple in Ayodhya. A total of 265 old remnants of the temple were found and the digging under the mosque was done by 137 workers, of which 52 were Muslims, he added.

The board chief pointed out that on the basis of this the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had reached the decision that a temple was buried underneath the Babri Masjid.

It is to be believed that these temples have been demolished and Babri Masjid has been built on the debris, he added. Rizvi highlighted that this has also been mentioned in the book, "I am Indian", by KK Mohammed.

Rizvi said that there should be an agreement and the right to the Hindus to build a Ram temple should be returned. The Muslims should build a new mosque in Lucknow, uncontroversial and with just money. 

He concluded that at the backdrop of such a scenario, calling Babri a masjid will be unjust and against the principles of Islam. "There is still time the 'mullas' of Babri should accept their mistakes and accept the preachings of Prophet Mohammed," he said.

Earlier this year, he had made similar remarks. "There was never a Masjid on that site in Ayodhya and there can never be a Masjid there. It is the birthplace of Lord Ram and only a Ram Temple will be built. Sympathizers of Babar are destined to lose," news agency ANI had quoted him as saying.