DNA Exclusive: Namaz in Mathura's Nand Baba Temple a coincidence or conspiracy?

New Delhi: Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Pakistan are known to have a maximum population of Muslims, but you will be surprised to know that India has a maximum number of mosques, According to the 2011 census data, there are more than 3 lakh mosques in India. Indonesia, however, with the largest Muslim population, has more than 8 lakh mosques, but the counting of the same is still on there since 2013.

Formally, India has a higher number of mosques than any nation in the world, but some people recently offered Namaz at a temple, creating suspicion in the minds of Hindus. They either tried to give a message of religious harmony or they deliberately tried to hurt the sentiments of Hindus. 

At Mathura's Nanda Baba temple on the 29th of last month, two Muslims, Fazal Khan and Chand Mohammad offered Namaz on the temple premises. The priests of the temple alleged that they did not allow them to do so. Later, an FIR was registered against four persons including Alok Ratan and Nilesh Gupta, apart from the two Muslim men. They all belong to a Delhi-based organization Khudai Khidmatgar.

According to the FIR, these people not only offered Namaz on the temple premises without taking permission but also took pictures and made them viral. Further, apprehension has also been expressed to ascertain if their act was not done to spoil the communal harmony. 

Now the question arises that in the country where there are more than 3 lakh mosques, why did some people need to offer Namaz in a temple? In the video, accused Faizal Khan and Chand Mohammed are not heard talking about offering prayers. Faizal Khan, who has been arrested, is seen talking with priests but his later action has put him under the scanner.

There are 3 lakh mosques in India, 2.5 lakh mosques in Bangladesh, but there is no concrete information about the number of mosques in Pakistan. Indonesia also claims to have 5 to 8 lakh mosques. There are about 4 million mosques all over the world, but you would have seen people offering prayers on the streets. Such pictures come from all over the world, not just India, especially on Friday. 

In countries like France, prayers offered by Muslims on the streets at times protested by non-Muslims. Three years ago, when some Muslims were offering prayers on the streets of Paris, local people opposed them and started singing the national anthem of France. Although this incident occurred three years ago, the story is still unchanged. 

In India, Namaz is seen offered on railway tracks and sometimes under flyovers and in the middle of the roads.

The first mosque in India was built in Thrissur, Kerala in the 7th century. Known as Cheraman Juma Masjid, it is one of the oldest mosques in the world. The first mosque, however, is recorded to have been built in Saudi Arabia's Medina and is known to be Quba Mosque. 

Since independence, the Muslim population in India has increased rapidly and the number of mosques to have also increased. The number of Muslims in India has increased at an average of 10 percent every year from 1951 to 2011, while the growth of the Hindu population has been less than 2 percent in the last decade. The population of Hindus is around 96 crore and the number of temples is two million.

The Nandababa temple in Mathura is believed to be the place where Lord Krishna spent his childhood in Dwapar Yuga, therefore, people here have preserved those sentiments for thousands of years. The Nandababa temple is currently situated on the highest hill of Nandgaon.

On contrary to this incident, some people chanted Hanuman Chalisa at an Idgah in Mathura and the police later arrested four people. Similar news on Friday came from Baghpat district in Uttar Pradesh where some people recited Hanuman Chalisa in a mosque. The Maulvi, who allowed these people to read Hanuman Chalisa in the mosque, has been asked to submit a bond of Rs 5 lakh.

Those who find goodwill message in the offering of Namaz in the temple should know that the Supreme Court while hearing the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi dispute, held that offering Namaz in the mosque is not an integral part of Islam. The Muslim side, however, had submitted that once a place becomes a mosque always remains a mosque. On the basis of this logic, they refused to build the Babri Masjid elsewhere.

People in Mathura now suspect that the offering Namaz in the Nanda Baba temple may also be related to the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi dispute. The district court of Mathura has already accepted the plea in this case, and the hearing would be held on the 18th of November.