Ajmer: A petition claiming that the mausoleum of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, or the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, is a Shiva temple was accepted by a lower court on Wednesday. The petition, filed by the Hindu Sena, has been admitted, with the next hearing scheduled for December 20.

The development follows Ajmer West Civil Judge (Senior Division) Manmohan Chandel’s decision to accept the petition filed by Vishnu Gupta for hearing. Justice Chandel ordered summon notices to be issued to the Dargah Committee, the Ministry of Minority Affairs, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in the matter.

The petition, filed by Vishnu Gupta, the national president of the Hindu Sena, claims that the site is a temple dedicated to Lord Mahadev.

On September 25 this year, an Ajmer court had declined to entertain a civil suit filed by Vishnu Gupta, which sought to declare the Ajmer Dargah as a Shiv temple. The court cited a lack of jurisdiction as the reason for its decision and adjourned the case for a further hearing on October 10.