A day after the Madhya Pradesh High Court declared the disputed Bhojshala Temple-Kamal Maula Mosque Complex at Dhar in the state as a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, Hindu devotees on Saturday offered prayers at the site.Devotees, along with office-bearers of the Bhoj Utsav Samiti, gathered at the premises where Hanuman Chalisa was recited with full rituals.The High Court on Friday granted the Hindu side the right to worship and recognise the complex as belonging to Raja Bhoj.“We are delighted that we were able to have darshan, and there was no fee, unlike previous times. Now, the entire Hindu society can conduct a pooja every day… We are elated after yesterday’s verdict, and all of us were crying and dancing with joy…” a devotee told the media.Bhoj Utsav Samiti member Rajesh Shukla, a primary petitioner in the case, urged the Muslim side to graciously accept the verdict of the court.“Thanks to the verdict of the High Court and the struggle of the people of Dhar, this day has come after centuries when we are organising pooja of the Goddess without any obstacle. We are waiting for the day when the idol of the Goddess will come and we will be able to offer prayers… The Muslim side should accept the verdict of the High Court as the constitution mandates, just like we were ready to accept…” he said.Lawyer Aviral Vikas Khare, representing the Archaeological Survey of India(ASI), highlighted the legal framework of the decision, stating, “The key highlights of this order are that the Bhojshala site has been designated as a ‘protected monument’, a status it has held since the year 1904. This implies that the entire administration and regulation of this monument shall remain exclusively with the ASI; in essence, the supervision of this site will rest solely with the ASI.”Meanwhile, representatives of the Muslim community said they would approach the Supreme Court against the verdict. They also accused the heritage conservation body ASI to submit a “deeply flawed and biased” survey report to the court.Dhar city Qazi Waqar Sadiq rejected the court’s recommendation that the Muslim side could approach the state government for an alternative piece of land for building the mosque.The lawyers representing petitioners from the Muslim side had cast doubts over the fairness of the ASI report, the defects in the ASI survey, and the lack of evidence over the destruction of a Saraswati temple.Referring to the historical record, senior advocate Salman Khurshid had argued there was no direct evidence that a Bhojshala temple had been demolished to construct the Kamal Maula mosque.“There is nothing in the record of the survey report… where there is any direct specific evidence or an assertion that this… is a property where a Bhojshala temple existed which was demolished and in its place the Kamal Maula mosque has been constructed,” he had submitted before the court.Khurshid also alleged irregularities in the handling of artifacts recovered during the survey. Referring to a sealed room within the complex that had been under the collector’s control since 1997, he claimed objects recovered there appeared suspiciously clean.