Race Course Mosque Near PM’s Residence Gets 6-Day Eviction Notice Despite Heritage Listing

A mosque more than a century old on Race Course Road in New Delhi, near the Prime Minister’s official residence at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg, has been given six days to vacate. The Land and Development Office (L&DO) issued the eviction notice on Monday, October 19, 2026, declaring the premises “unauthorised”.

The notice has drawn attention because the mosque is listed as a heritage property by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

What the eviction notice says

According to reports, the L&DO says the mosque stands on government land and has declared the premises unauthorised. It has ordered the mosque to be vacated within six days.

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The mosque says its electricity and water supply were disconnected on October 7, and that the approach to the mosque has been blocked.

Listed as a heritage property

The NDMC website lists “Mosque and Campus, Race Course” among its notified heritage properties. Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind says the mosque also appears in the NDMC heritage list referred to in a 1977 Delhi Gazette notification and in a revised list maintained by the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs.

The mosque is also registered with the Delhi Waqf Board and can hold about 800 worshippers, according to Madhyamam.

Two claims on the same land

• The government’s position: The L&DO says the mosque is on government land and is unauthorised.
• The mosque’s position: It is a registered Waqf property, is heritage-listed and predates Independence.
• The imam’s claim: Imam Mohammed Harun says a 2021 survey did not identify the mosque as an encroachment. This has not been independently verified.

What is the Land and Development Office?

The L&DO works under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and manages central government land in Delhi. In February 2023, it released the Delhi Waqf Board from matters related to 123 properties, including mosques, dargahs and graveyards, based on a two-member committee’s report. The Waqf Board challenged the move in the Delhi High Court. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri later told Parliament that the properties had not been seized.

It has happened before

In December 2023, the NDMC proposed removing the roughly 150-year-old Sunehri Bagh Masjid in Lutyens’ Delhi, citing traffic congestion. In February 2024, the Delhi High Court rejected a public interest litigation against the proposal, noting that the Delhi Waqf Board had already taken steps to protect the property.

What happens next

A Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind delegation led by general secretary Maulana Mohammad Hakimuddin Qasmi met Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and submitted a memorandum. It sought protection for the mosque and the adjoining graveyard, restoration of electricity and water, and access for worshippers. Rijiju assured the delegation he would make every possible effort.

Jamiat has also sought reports from the Delhi Waqf Board and the NDMC, and urged that no demolition take place before the legal process is complete. No court case over the mosque has been reported so far. The imam says the Waqf Board has not approached the court.

The notice comes amid a wider eviction drive on Race Course Road. On October 19, the Delhi High Court reportedly allowed civic authorities to move slum dwellers from the area to Savda Ghevra, about 45 km away.

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