In blatant violation of environmental and heritage norms, an ancient Chinar adjacent to a 600-year old masjid at the Khanpur Mughal Sarai in Budgam district was axed last month.
The move has evoked strong resentment from archaeological experts who accuse locals of vandalising the majestic Chinar.
Speaking with the Greater Kashmir, ex-chairman of the National Monuments Authority of India and convener Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), J&K chapter, M Saleem Beg said he has informed the Budgam district administration regarding the vandalisation of the Chinar and a threat of encroachment to the masjid premises.
“As per Archaeological Survey of India, the site was already protected in 1958. But one fails to understand why ASI then did not include the 300 square-feet masjid in the protected site,” said Beg.
In his letter to Budgam district administration, Beg has highlighted that the “sarais on the Mughal route in J&K always have had a mosque adjacent to the main premises.”
Beg has asked the administration that the area may be fenced “and given in the formal charge of the Rural Development Department or any other agency who may also be asked to fence it.”