Members of hardline Hindu groups filed petitions in a court in northern India to stop Muslims from entering a historic mosque, until the court decides on an earlier plea seeking approval to look for any Hindu relics which may be on the site, lawyers said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Hindutva organization Sri Ram Sene said it is preparing a list of churches and mosques in Karnataka it claims are illegal.
Another Hindutva outfit, the Narendra Modi Vichar Manch, called for a survey of mosques in the state to look for evidence of Hindu monuments that may have stood at the same sites.
Judges of a local court in Mathura in Uttar Pradesh (UP) allowed the new petitions but are yet to start hearings in the 2020 case aimed at securing permission to film and survey inside the 17th century Shahi Eidgah mosque.
"We suspect that Hindu symbols could be removed inside Shahi Eidgah mosque so we want the court to suspend entry of Muslims," said Mahendra Pratap, a lawyer for the groups.
This month, another UP court allowed a team to inspect and film inside one of the most prominent mosques in Varanasi, the political constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On Tuesday, the country's top court overturned a ruling imposed by a Varanasi court to limit large Muslim prayer gatherings in the Gyanvapi mosque, but allowed the local court to continue proceedings.
Members of hardline Hindu groups tied to Modi's party believe that Islamic invaders destroyed Hindu temples during their 200-year rule.
"We believe that idols of Hindu gods were lying inside the mosque built after a temple was destroyed by Muslim rulers to prove supremacy," said Ranjana Agnihotri, a lawyer appearing on behalf of the Mathura Hindu groups.
Surveyors involved in the Varanasi case said they found a large relic of the Hindu god Shiva inside the Gyanvapi mosque, but Muslim groups said that a fountainhead was being misrepresented to stir religious tension.
Reports of idols found inside the mosque have further emboldened Hindu groups in western and southern states to demand searches in other mosques.
Police in Aurangabad city said they had intensified security around the grave of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb after members of a regional political party threatened to destroy the tomb.
Leaders of Muslim political and religious groups said they will fight legal battles against Hindu groups disrupting the sanctity of mosques and tombs.
"We (Muslims) will not let Hindus insult our faith and our mosques," said Asaduddin Owaisi, a federal lawmaker.
Listing ‘illegal’ churches, mosques
Sri Ram Sene chief Pramod Muthalik alleged that some citizens have converted their homes into churches by placing crosses and conducting prayers there. He alleged that such places were being used to carry out religious conversions.
Muthalik claimed that there are more than 500 such informal churches in Karnataka.