An Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) team began examining the 20-foot-deep and around 1.5-metre-wide well discovered beneath the rubble of a mosque demolished inside the premises of the Saharanpur Collectorate in Uttar Pradesh. The well was discovered beneath the debris on Sunday during removal work, triggering a debate over its antiquity and historical significance.
Well appears to predate mosque: ASI
A team from the ASI visited the site on Monday to examine the well discovered beneath the debris of the demolished mosque. The ASI team entered the well using a ladder and conducted a preliminary examination of its structure.
Following the inspection, ASI official Manoj Kumar Yada, who entered the well, told the media that the structure appeared to be around 200 to 300 years old, indicating that the well may predate the mosque. However, he noted that this is not surprising, as similar structures could potentially be found elsewhere.
According to the ASI team, further details will only be known after the well is excavated. For now, the administration has merely sought information regarding the well's age. "It cannot yet be definitively confirmed whether the structure was actually a well. The exact nature and history would become clear only after excavation, which could be carried out by the administration subject to the required permission. The structure is believed to date back to the post-medieval period," he said.
Meanwhile, the 'Mutawalli' (caretaker) of the mosque committee stated the well, noting that wells have long been used for 'Wudu' (ritual ablution) at the mosque and that this was one of them.
Court ordered mosque demolition
The mosque was demolished on September 5 following an order issued by the City Magistrate and a subsequent decision by the district court. District Judge Satendra Kumar rejected a petition filed by the Muslim side and upheld the City Magistrate's July 16, 2026, order, which had treated the disputed land as government property.
Following the court's decision, the administration sealed the mosque late at night and began removing the portion it considers to have been constructed on government land the next morning.
Vikas Tyagi, a former Bajrang Dal convenor and the complainant in the matter, claimed that a temple might have existed at the site before the mosque was built. In 2025, Tyagi filed a petition in the city magistrate's court, alleging that the structure within the collectorate premises was illegal. Subsequently, the Saharanpur city magistrate declared the structure illegal and ordered its demolition.
The mosque management committee appealed the order in the district court, which rejected its appeal on September 2.
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