Is it Adina Mosque or Adinath Temple? A long-standing controversy has flared up again after former cricketer and Trinamool MP Yusuf Pathan visited the Adina Mosque, protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), in West Bengal and posted images of the site.
In his post, Pathan called the Adina Mosque an architectural marvel. It provoked a barrage of reactions from the BJP and social media users, who pointed out that it was the Adinath temple and the mosque had been built over it. Historical references and apparent images of deities resembling Lord Ganesh and Shiva from the site were also shared online.
WHAT YUSUF PATHAN POSTED
The structure, one of the largest mosques built in the subcontinent, today lies largely in ruins.
“The Adina Mosque is a historic mosque built in the 14th century by Sultan Sikandar Shah, the second ruler of the Ilyas Shahi dynasty. Built in 1373-1375 CE, it was the largest mosque in the Indian subcontinent at the time, showcasing the architectural grandeur of the region,” Pathan tweeted.
Additionally, the exterior of the mosque features carvings of elephants and dancing figures. It was located in the historic city of Pandua, the former capital of the Bengal Sultanate.
The Trinamool MP from Behrampore faced huge backlash on social media, with users accusing Pathan of ignoring the alleged origin of the structure. “Correction: Adinath Temple,” the BJP’s Bengal unit tweeted.
ADINA MOSQUE DISPUTE OVER THE YEARS
The dispute between the temple and the mosque first broke out in 2022, when BJP vice-president Rathindra Bose tweeted that the Adinath mandir was buried under the mosque structure. “The Adinath Temple sleeps beneath this Adina Mosque… That history is unknown to many,” Bose tweeted, sparking renewed interest in the structure’s origins.
The post came as numerous disputes over temples and mosques in several states began to spiral out of control, including the Gyanvapi Mosque issue in Varanasi.
Two years later, in 2024, the issue came into the spotlight again after a Hindu priest, Hiranmoy Goswami, led a group of devotees and performed puja on the premises of the Adina Mosque.
The police quickly intervened and prevented a possible communal unrest. In Malda district, Muslims make up about 52% of the population.
Later, Goswami claimed to have discovered a Shivling and other symbols related to Hindu culture during his visit. An FIR was also registered against the priest.
The issue got a breath of fresh air after senior advocate Hari Shankar Jain, who was involved in the Gyanvapi and Krishna Janmabhoomi cases, raised the dispute and wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. In his letter, Jain sought permission from Hindus to perform puja at the mosque complex.
The senior lawyer also posted a video message on
The ASI, however, has maintained a neutral stance and stated that the Adina Mosque remained a monument of national importance.
MOSQUE OR TEMPLE?
The construction of the mosque was carried out shortly before Sultan Sikandar Shah died. The complex, which later became a symbol of the power of the Bengal Sultanate, also houses his tomb.
Over the years, several archaeologists and historians have maintained that the mosque was built using ruins of pre-existing Hindu and Buddhist shrines. They also claimed that the word “Adina” came from “Adinath”, another name of Shiva (‘Adi’ means first and ‘nath’ means God).
Following Pathan’s post, several users shared historical references and images of so-called stone slabs from the mosque complex with floral motifs, lotus patterns and deities. According to reports, the base of the mosque is made of heavy basalt masonry, typical of early Hindu temples.
Arch structures in the complex have been discovered to exhibit patterns typical of temple doorways.
“The Hindu sculptures stand out so strikingly…how can you consider secularism or ‘Indo-Islamic architecture’ in such things as a big question mark!” author and researcher Monidipa Bose tweeted in 2024.
While Pathan’s tweet may have been an accidental post about his visit to a tourist spot, it has once again revived one of the oldest and most sensitive temple-mosque debates in West Bengal.
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