Portion of Ujjain mosque damaged during road widening days after clashes

A portion of the Shahi Masjid at Chhatri Chowk in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain was damaged during the removal of obstructions for a road-widening project, officials said on Thursday. Collector Roshan Kumar Singh said no one was injured and appealed to people to stay away from rumours.

The work is being carried out with mutual cooperation and in a peaceful manner, officials said.

The road-widening exercise is linked to a project on a key 900-metre stretch aimed at easing the movement of pilgrims during the Simhastha Kumbh 2028, though tensions had flared earlier over the proposed demolition of a portion of the mosque.

"During the road widening work in Ujjain, some damage has been caused to a portion of the mosque. No one was injured in the incident," the collector said. He added that the administration was continuously monitoring the situation and that representatives of all religions and communities, along with local residents, were present at the spot and were in constant touch with officials.

He urged people to rely only on information from authentic sources and warned that strict legal action would be taken against anyone spreading rumours, misleading information or false news through social media or any other medium.

Additional Superintendent of Police Guru Prasad Parashar said photography and videography had been prohibited within a 500-metre radius to ensure movement did not disrupt the work of community members or lead to any injuries.

Officials said the portion of the mosque being dismantled has shops on the ground floor. The road from Kanthal crossing to Gopal Mandir is being widened to 15 metres, and the project involves the removal or modification of structures falling within the proposed alignment.

Ujjain civic body Executive Engineer Rajkumar Rathore said that, under the master plan, 2.7 metres of the portion from Chhatri Chowk towards Gopal Mandir and 1.4 metres of the portion at the other end are affected by the project, for which a notice had been issued. The work has also affected shops in the area.

"Since the work is technically sensitive, the people of the community are carrying it out in a phased and safe manner," an official said. Shahar Qazi Khaliqur Rahman said members of the Muslim community continue to offer all five daily prayers at the mosque, which is claimed to be around 100 years old.

The road-widening exercise is part of a larger project in Ujjain under which 272 structures, including religious sites, are set to be affected.

The state government has sanctioned around Rs 9.8 crore for the project, and officials had earlier said that a portion of the Shahi Mosque at Chhatri Chowk was being voluntarily removed by the community.