Mosque on Graveyard Land Declared Illegal in UP Village, Eviction Ordered

A mosque built on land designated as a graveyard in Uttar Pradesh’s Kaserua village has been declared illegal by a tehsildar court, which has also ordered its eviction.

Officials said a revenue team led by Tehsildar Dhirendra Kumar Singh visited the village, located under the Nakhasa police station area, on Friday to inspect and demarcate the disputed site. The land in question, measuring around 1,100 to 1,200 square metres, is officially recorded as a kabristan in government records.

The issue came to light after local residents submitted a complaint to the district magistrate, stating that the village was facing a shortage of burial space. They urged authorities to safeguard the land meant for community use.

Following a review of revenue records, officials found that a portion of the graveyard had been encroached upon and a mosque had been constructed on it.

Tehsildar Singh said action was initiated under Section 67 of the applicable revenue laws after confirming the encroachment. He noted that while the mosque committee took part in the proceedings, it was unable to present any valid documents to establish legal ownership or rights over the land.

He also remarked that constructing a mosque on land designated as a graveyard is not only against the law but also raises concerns from a religious standpoint.

The court has ordered the eviction of the mosque. However, the mosque committee has challenged the decision and filed an appeal before the district magistrate’s court. Authorities have said that further steps will depend on the outcome of this appeal.

Meanwhile, the revenue department has also issued notices to other individuals accused of encroaching on village community land by building houses. The tehsildar has advised residents to remove such encroachments voluntarily, warning that failure to do so could lead to strict action, including penalties and demolition.