ISLAMABAD, May 26: The prayer leader of a mosque at F-11/4, which has been at the centre of a dispute between two groups, was arrested under preventative measures on Friday.

The police said they would request the local administration to either seal the mosque or give it under the Auqaf Department a week after both the groups failed to settle their dispute.

On Friday morning, the area magistrate, Ms Lubna, along with the police reached the mosque to give the possession of the mosque to one of the groups on the direction of a civil court. But a scuffle broke out between the two groups.

The groups later also manhandled the policemen deployed there to avoid any untoward situation. They also pasted pamphlets on the wall against the administration and police accusing them of ‘interfering’ in the affairs of the worship place.

As a result, the magistrate left the spot without executing the court orders.

The mosque had been under the control of the city administration which had deployed police there since last year. Except for the five times prayers, all other activities, like teaching at the adjacent seminary, remain banned.

The police said both the groups wanted the post of the prayer leader. Earlier, the capital’s Auquf Department had given the possession of the mosque to a committee after sacking its prayer leader. However, he refused to leave the post, which led to the dispute.

For the last three years, both the groups have engaged in brawls at least for three times. In response, cases were registered against them and the troublemakers were put behind bars, who later obtained bail from the courts.