Pre-dawn Sitapur demolition: officials say mosque built on pond land
In the pre-dawn hours on Monday (around 3 am), officials in Sitapur took down a mosque in the Leharpur area, saying it was built illegally on land reserved for a pond.
The demolition was overseen by Additional District Magistrate Nitish Kumar, with a strong police presence to keep things peaceful.
Eviction order issued January 2026
The dispute had been pending for a long time; a case was filed by the Gram Sabha on December 18, 2025.
By January 2026, the court decided the mosque had to go and issued an eviction notice, but it wasn't followed.
Officials say this is part of a bigger push to reclaim government land from encroachment.
Maulana Abdul Rahman, linked to the mosque, didn't comment much but suggested politics played a role.
The administration insists all legal steps were followed during the process.