Prayers allowed at Race Course Masjid amid police watch, access curbs

Prayers were allowed at the Race Course Masjid on Friday, even as police personnel remained stationed at the gate leading to the structure, monitoring those entering and leaving the premises. While scores of worshippers were allowed in for Jummah prayers in the day, access was restricted later, with a handful of people turned away by sunset.

The restrictions come amid concerns over the future of the Waqf-notified Grade II heritage structure. Its water and electricity connections were disconnected on October 7 during the demolition of three jhuggi clusters in the area.

The masjid is located inside the Race Course Club, which occupies around 53 acres near the Prime Minister’s residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. The club premises and surrounding slum clusters face eviction with the Centre citing national security concerns to justify taking over the area. However, officials had said on Thursday that no eviction notice had been sent to the mosque.

A 35-year-old man leaving the masjid after afternoon prayers said he had worshipped there since childhood. He was among the residents of one of the three jhuggi clusters opposite the PM’s residence who have been rehabilitated to Savda Ghevra, nearly 50 km away.

“I was born here and grew up here and have always prayed at this masjid. I work at the Ashoka Hotel in Chanakyapuri, so it is easy for me to come here and offer prayers every day. This gate leading to the masjid was installed recently, after they started demolishing the slums,” he said.

At the gate leading hangs a Delhi Police notice imposing prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita in the area.

By 4 pm, fewer than 10 people were allowed inside for the Asr (afternoon) prayers. Media personnel were asked to wait outside the gate.

Story continues below this ad

Hamid (20), who works at a nearby petrol pump, said, “There were fewer than 10 people for the prayers.”

By sunset, media personnel had left and the police presence had thinned. A handful of worshippers gathered at the gate for Maghrib (evening) prayers but were not allowed in.

Among them was Altaf Khan, who works at a nearby hotel. “The police said we were allowed inside only for the length of the namaz, for 15 minutes,” he said.

“For Asr, they let us pray. Now they are saying we will need permission from higher officials. How is that fair to us?” he asked.

Story continues below this ad

A man who lives on the masjid premises, said the mosque now sees only four or five worshippers at a time, with prayers held two or three times a day. “Since the disconnection of utilities, residents have arranged a generator and draw groundwater for ablutions. But the prayers are mostly held in the dark,” he added.

On October 8, the Delhi Waqf Board had written to the NDMC executive engineer seeking the restoration of the utilities. On October 15, NDMC refused to restore the utilities, saying that “since demolition work is still going on” in the area, which involves demolition of the jhuggi structures, “and there is an element of public harm involved, the electricity connection cannot be restored”.

The masjid’s imam had also approached the Delhi High Court seeking restoration of the utilities, but the court had declined the same on October 15.