Construction of proposed mosque in Ayodhya likely to begin in May next year

Lucknow: The construction of the proposed mosque, to be built at Dhannipur village near Ayodhya, is likely to begin from May next year.

According to the sources close to the Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation Trust, which would be overseeing the construction of the mosque, a prominent Imam (priest) of the sacred Mecca may lead the first prayer at the mosque.

The Trust has decided to appoint its representatives in every state in the country for the purpose of obtaining donations for the Mosque. ''The final design of the mosque is likely to be with us in the next couple of months after which the construction work will start,'' said an official of the Trust in Ayodhya.

He attributed the delay in starting construction of the Mosque to frequent changes in the design.

Earlier one of the officials associated with the Mosque Development Committee had said that an Imam from the sacred Masjid-e-Haram in Mecca would lead the first prayers in the Ayodhya Mosque once it was completed. He also said that the mosque was likely to be completed in 5 to 6 years. The Trust officials, however, said that as of now there was no plan to invite the Mecca Imam to lead the first prayer at the Mosque.

The Trust had earlier made it clear that there would be no mention of the name of 'Babar' (the Mughal emperor on whose orders the Ram Temple was allegedly demolished in the 16th century) in the proposed mosque.

The Sunni Central Waqf Board has been allotted five acres of land at Raunahin, about 30 kilometres from Ayodhya for building a mosque as per the Supreme Court order. The board set up an Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation Trust to oversee the construction of the mosque.