The illegal mosque inside the Krantiveera Sangoli Rayanna railway station on platform number five has been converted back to a porters’ restroom on 2nd February 2022. The action was taken after Hindu activists protested against the mosque and urged the South Western railways’ officials to take legal action against the unauthorized place of worship.
A report published in Indian Express said that after a protest by Hindu Janajagruti Vedike members, South-Western railways officials have restored the mosque back to the porters’ restroom as it earlier was. According to the report, an SWR officer has said “The restroom is the porter’s place and even today they are the ones who take care of it. We have never interfered in their restroom and they have never complained about their colleagues performing prayers. The issue will be solved in consultation.”
The issue was actually raised by a social media user who had made a video of this illegally converted mosque wherein it was clearly shown that it earlier used to be a porters’ restroom and still the interiors of the room were painted and made up like that of a mosque. The South Western Railways (SWR) repainted the walls of the room on Tuesday and deployed personnel of the Railway Police Force (RPF) after locking it.
The colour code used by the railways for the original construction was white and blue. The Muslims painted it green to underline the exclusivity as non-Muslim porters were not allowed to enter the porters’ restroom as it was converted to a mosque.
The mosque was not only converted back to the restroom but all the paraphernalia related to the mosque were also removed. The interior and exterior of this room are again painted blue as before.
A photo frame comprising of different religious symbols put together is also fixed on the wall to emphasize that this is a public place and does not belong to any particular religion.
Hindu activists protest against alleged illegal mosque at Bengaluru railway station
A controversy had erupted in Bengaluru after Hindu activists in the city protested against the illegal conversion of public property inside the Krantiveera Sangoli Rayanna railway station to a mosque.
A video had gone viral on the internet a few days ago, in which it was alleged that a mosque was unlawfully set up by converting a porters’ restroom on platform number 5 of KSR railway station in Bengaluru. A social media user had released a video on Twitter alleging that the porters’ restroom at a platform in KSR railway station in Bengaluru was converted into a mosque.
The videos stoked massive controversy in the state, leading to which the civilians in the city protested against the illegal conversion of public property into a mosque. On Monday, the members of Hindu Janajagruti Vedike also protested against the South Western Railway officials for allowing the unlawful conversion of porters’ rooms inside the railway station
