- By Aditya Jha
- Thu, 22 Jan 2026 01:21 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Hindus prayers on Basant Panchmi at the disputed Bhojshala in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district. The apex court also permitted the Muslims to offer Namaz for 2 hours from 1 pm to 3 pm. The state government has deployed over eight thousand police personnel in the district ahead of a Hindu religious event scheduled on January 23. The senior officials, including Indore Range IG Anurag and Central Reserve Police Force IG Neelu Bhattacharya, inspected the site on Wednesday evening and gave necessary instructions to the officials.
The state government has made tight security arrangements as Hindus will celebrate Saraswati Pooja and the Muslims will offer namaz on the same day. The Bhojshala has been divided into six sectors, and 300 CCTV cameras have been installed to monitor the situation. Apart from this, the authorities have installed 700 CCTV cameras in the other parts of the city to maintain the law and order. An Akshat Kalash Yatra (procession with sacred rice and water pots) was held by the Hindu woman on Wednesday amid the tight security.
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While providing details, Indore IG Anurag stated that the crowd movements will be monitored using the artificial intelligence (AI). "Crowd movements will be monitored using drones and artificial intelligence (AI). The AI system will provide information on where the crowd is heading. Experienced officers who have previously handled similar situations have also been deployed," IG Anurag was quoted as saying by the Jagran.com.
As per its 2003 order, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) issues additional guidelines when a Hindu religion coincides with Friday. Previously, Basant Panchami also fell on a Friday in 2006, 2013, and 2016, leading to special security arrangements from the authorities.
(Updates to follow)