Another Babri in the waiting ....

 

Illustration by James Prinsep, 1834

Aurangzeb Alamgir invaded Varanasi and destroyed the original Vishwanath temple at Gyanvapi ("Well of knowledge") complex and erected this mosque from the parts of the temple (beyond dispute from this photograph).

Later Marathas captured the city and reconstructed the new Vishwanath temple which is seen today.  But they spared the mosque, as it was Shivaji's order, ".. fight muslims but don't destroy their holy places". Hope some radical Hindus (who claim to be his followers) are listening !

 

The  temple (reconstructed few hundred metres away) stands today as one of the holiest of Hindu shrines, shrouded with nearly a ton of gold.

 

References :

• Frommer's India 
• Sacred complex of Kashi  
• The untrue stories 
• Credit Aurangzeb

BHU still numero uno

In the survey, the BHU was adjudged better than Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), University of Delhi, University of Calcutta and other prestigious universities on a number of parameters including reputation of the university, quality of academic input, faculty, research publications/reports, projects, infrastructure and placements.

The main campus of this premier central university spreads over 1,300 acres, and has well-maintained roads, extensive greenery, a temple, an air-strip and buildings with unique architecture. The BHU today has nearly 20,000 students including 2,500 research scholars and 650 foreign students from 34 nations under one roof.


Read more: Its official, BHU is numero uno - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Its-official-BHU-is-numero-uno/articleshow/5966073.cms