Hindu litigant says he is withdrawing from Gyanvapi cases

Varanasi: One of the main litigants from the Hindu side Jitendra Singh Visen has announced that he and his family are withdrawing from all cases related Gynavapi issue due to alleged "harassment".

His lawyer Shivam Gaur had earlier also withdrawn from the cases.

"I and my family (wife Kiran Singh and niece Rakhi Singh) are withdrawing from all Gyanvapi-related cases that we had filed in the interest of the country and religion in various courts," Visen, who heads the Vishwa Vedic Sanatan Sangh, said in a statement issued here on Saturday.

He alleged that they were facing harassment from various quarters including from the Hindu side and felt humiliated.

"In such a situation, due to limited strength and resources, I cannot fight this battle for 'dharma' anymore and that's why I am leaving this.

"Perhaps the biggest mistake I made in my life was by starting this 'dharmayudh'. This society is only with those who mislead by playing gimmicks in the name of religion," he said.

Visen's lawyer Gaur, who had left the case earlier, in a separate statement said that due to a communication gap with plaintiffs, he was withdrawing from the Gyanvapi case, which he is contesting from 2021, and Krishna Janmabhoomi case, which he took up in 2022.

He said that he did not get any fee after May 2022 for contesting these cases.

Five women plaintiffs, including Visen's niece Rakhi Singh, had filed the original Shringar Gauri suit in August 2021 seeking permission for daily worship of Goddess Shringar Gauri and other deities in the Gyanvapi mosque compound.

However, Rakhi parted ways with the other women and differences appeared between Visen and the lawyers of the four other plaintiffs, including Hari Shankar Jain and Vishnu Shankar Jain, in May 2022.

Visen had then announced his resignation as the national convener and national general secretary in the Hind Samrajya Party run by the Jain duo.

He is involved in litigation related to various high-profile matters like Gyanvapi mosque, Idgah mosque in Mathura and the Taj Mahal.

Other cases filed by Visen include seeking a ban on the entry of Muslims into Gyanvapi premises.