Hindu faithful began to pray in a mosque on Thursday, triggering a new controversy over the holy sites. Ten days after the inauguration of a Hindu temple in Ayodhya, the holy city of Varanasi finds itself at the center of interfaith quarrels.
A local court gave permission to Hindu worshipers to pray inside the Gyanvapi mosque, and asked authorities to make arrangements within the next seven days to ensure they can worship. This sanctuary, built in the 16th century, had been reserved for Muslims only for thirty years.