Lucknow: Portions of a madrassa and an attached mosque, allegedly built on govt land, were demolished by district authorities in Siddharthnagar on Tuesday following a court order.The demolition drive was briefly disrupted after local Samajwadi Party leaders staged a protest. Police later removed the protesters from the site.The exercise began around 7 am when the sub-divisional magistrate, accompanied by six bulldozers, PAC personnel and police teams from five police stations, reached Madrassa Arabia Zia-ul-Uloom and its adjoining mosque in Pipra Ramlal village on the Bansi-Domariyaganj road.According to officials, the madrassa and mosque were originally constructed in 1938. In 1967, the institution was shifted to privately owned land. Authorities alleged that it later expanded onto adjoining govt land.Officials said around 400 children studied at the madrassa. Govt records show that nearly 9,000 sq ft of the land occupied by the institution was earmarked as a playground.In 2022, five villagers jointly filed a petition before the Domariyaganj tehsildar’s court seeking removal of the alleged encroachment. The court subsequently issued an eviction order in 2023.Madrassa caretaker Abdul Salam challenged the order before the district magistrate’s court. However, on Aug 14, 2026, the DM’s court upheld the tehsildar’s order, clearing the way for demolition.As the operation began on Tuesday, Domariyaganj SP MLA Sayyada Khatoon and the party’s district president, Lalji Yadav, arrived at the site along with party workers and protested against the action. They also argued with police personnel before being escorted away from the location. The demolition drive was completed within two hours.
