Parts of Two Historic Mosques Demolished in India Under the Pretext of Road Expansion

In Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain district, parts of the nearly 150-year-old Madina Mosque were demolished with bulldozers for a road expansion project. The eviction drive was carried out on September 1 (Tuesday) near the KD-Gate area using heavy machinery and JCB bulldozers.

According to Indian media reports, the road-facing portions of both the historic Madina Mosque and Jamiatul Quraish Qasaban Mosque, located on KD-Road, were demolished. As the demolition began, members of the local Muslim community expressed strong anger. A large number of police and security personnel were deployed to control the situation and maintain law and order.

Shahid Khan, a member of the Madina Mosque committee, said the mosque is 100 to 150 years old. Local residents had already given up portions of their shops for the road project, yet bulldozers were used on the mosque.
Santosh Thakur, Additional Commissioner (Simhastha) of the municipal corporation, claimed that the demolished portion fell within the designated road expansion area and that the work was carried out through mutual coordination. Ujjain City Qazi Khaliq-ur-Rahman said a meeting would soon be held with the administration to discuss the matter.

According to local sources, the road expansion and infrastructure development work on KD-Road is being carried out ahead of the 2028 Ujjain ‘Simhastha Mela’.