Pressure Mounts on Olympic Mega Mosque Group after Breach of Legal Undertaking

Pressure is mounting on Tablighi Jama'at (TJ), the fundamentalist Islamic group behind the proposed West Ham mega-mosque, to leave land close to the Olympics site and demolish their temporary mosque buildings. It comes as a result of the group's failure to keep to a binding and voluntary undertaking made to Newham Council in February last year.

"Not for the first time TJ has failed to keep an undertaking," said Alan Craig, director of the local MegaMosqueNoThanks opposition campaign and Leader of the Christian Peoples Alliance party.

At the time of a Public Inquiry into TJ's continued occupancy of the site, the group signed a Deed of Undertaking with Newham Council that it would submit valid plans by February 2012 or cease using the site. The group also promised that if they failed on this Undertaking, they would carry out works to remove buildings, fixtures and car park hardstanding.

Planning lawyers have advised the opposition campaign that TJ have no right of appeal against these penalties.

Alan Craig served as a local councillor close to the site and has been working for many years with local residents, including muslims, who oppose TJ's proposal for the mosque. He added:

"The group has an history of breaking planning laws, flouting building regulations and breaching solemn agreements. Its track record is one of negligence and irresponsibility. We are urging Newham Council to move them off the site and to knock down the buildings."

So far over 3,000 leaflets have been distributed to residents near the site by volunteers from the MegaMosqueNoThanks team. The leaflets tell how and why the Council has a golden opportunity to remove TJ from the site.

"TJ are fundamentalist, separatist, sexist and anti-social and, if built, their mega-mosque would do real harm to community relations and integration," said Alan Craig."Newham Council must pull the legal trigger now and clear the site for other and better community use."