AYODHYA (PTI): The demolition of the Babri masjid at Ayodhya recently saw the government of the northern Indian Uttar Pradesh state go down more than a thousand people killed five organizations banned parliament thrown out of gear the supreme court disobeyed and worldwide protests.

Disputes and controversies have always dogged it but over the past few years it has become a very emotive issue in the subcontinent.

The Muslims say it was a mosque built in 1528 in honor of Babur the founder of the Mughal Timur dynasty. The Hindus claim it was built over one of their most sacred places where a temple stood at the birth-place of Lord Rama.

The dispute was earlier resolved by erecting a wall around the 464year-old structure. Hindus and Muslims reached an understanding to offer prayers at different times. Rival claims over the structure however simmered.

It has been in the proverbial eye of the storm since late 19th century. January 1885 saw the first of the attempts to build a temple but the British administration rejected all such petitions.

In December 1949 some local Hindus installed an idol inside the shrine at night. The district magistrate ordered the main gates locked from the next day.

The stalemate continued while a temporary injunction between January 1950 and April 1955 restrained the disputing parties from removing the idols and from interfering with religious ceremonies outside the sanctum sanctorum.

After a relative calm through to 1986 the district magistrate of Faizabad dismissed the earlier order by which main gates were locked and the gale was opened.

In May 1989 the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) announced its plans to raise a Rs 250 million temple at the disputed site.

In October it announced its decision to go ahead with the “Shilanyas” ceremony for the proposed temple with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) urged the government to hand over the disputed site to the Hindus. The Shilanyas has carried out in November.

In September 1990 BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani launched a cross-country Rath Yatra in support of the VHP demand for a temple. Advanis arrest on October 231990 in Bihar while on his way to Ayodhya saw the National Front Government collapse at the Center with the BJP withdrawing support to the then premier V.P Singh.

The end of October and beginning of November 1990 saw many kar sewaks gathering at Ayodhya Police resorted to firing when the mob turned unruly and some tried to storm the disputed structure.

In October 1991 the BJP government of Kalyan Singh acquired 1.11 hectares of land around the shrine. The acquisition was immediately challenged the court. In November the Supreme Court directed the U.P. government to maintain status quo of structures within the acquired land.

In April 1992 contempt proceedings against the U.P. government were filed in the Supreme Court while the next 3 months saw hectic activity on the acquired land for construction of the temple.

SC asked the state government to maintain status quo which the latter promised to abide by but failed to curb the construction activity pleading helplessness.

The construction activity was finally brought to a halt in July after talks between BJP leader L.K Advani and Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. The premier pacified the hard-liners by seeking three months’ time to help arrive at an amicable solution.

Between July and November 1992 talks between the VHP and All India Babri Masjid Action Committee (AIBMAC) resumed but no agreement was reached.

In November the VHP-BJP combine assailed the central governments “inaction” on the issue and gave December 6 as the date for resumption of “kar seva.”

On Nov.16, 1992 the Kalyan Singh government filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court assuring the court that it would not allow any constructions activity in Ayodhya and that the December 6 kar seva would be only symbolic as allowed by the Apex court.

Finally on Dec.3 L.K Advani and BJP president Murli Manohar Joshi decided to travel across UP to Ayodhya to garner support for the temple.

Article extracted from this publication >>