Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has asserted that the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi should be recognized as Vishwanath (Lord Shiva) rather than a mosque.
His comments, made during an event in Gorakhpur on Saturday, come in the wake of a recent court decision regarding the site.
"Unfortunately, people call Gyanvapi a mosque, but it is actually Vishwanath himself," Adityanath declared.
He argued that the ongoing confusion about the site's true identity poses a significant barrier to worship and national unity.
The Chief Minister further claimed that understanding and resolving this issue in the past could have prevented the country from being colonized.
Adityanath's statement followed a Varanasi court's rejection of a petition from Hindu groups seeking repairs and restoration of the "Vyas Ka Tahkhana" within the Gyanvapi mosque complex.
The court’s decision considered objections from the Muslim side and ongoing cases in the Supreme Court.
The dispute over the Gyanvapi site involves claims from Hindu activists that a temple existed there before it was allegedly demolished by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in the 17th century—a claim disputed by the Muslim community.
In February, the court allowed Hindu devotees to worship in the sealed basement of the Gyanvapi mosque, known as 'Vyas Ka Tekhana', amid the ongoing legal and historical debates surrounding the site.
