Babri Masjid Demolition Anniversary: All you need to know about the demolition of disputed structure in Ayodhya

The demolition wasn't just destruction of a historical monument but it infused the poison of hatred among people.

Mumbai, Dec 6: Twenty three years back, on 6 December 1992, the historical monument called ‘Babri Masjid’ was demolished by Kar Sevaks. The destruction was entirely orchestrated by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and their ideologues- RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal. The Congress government at the Centre also provided support by adopting ‘no action’ strategy. The criminal act of demolition of Babri Masjid led to widespread communal violence in the country which claimed more than 2000 lives.

The Liberhan Commission led by Dr Manmohan Singh Liberhan concluded that 68 people- mostly leaders of BJP, were responsible for the demolition of Babri Masjid. The commission blamed Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the former BJP prime minister, L K Advani and the then Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh for provoking the mob. However the commission downplayed the role of Narasimha Rao government at the centre. (ALSO READ: Babri Masjid demolition anniversary: Prohibitory orders in Hyderabad)

On 24 September 2010, the Allahabad High Court ruled that the 2,400 square feet disputed piece of land, on which Babri Masjid stood before it was demolished on December 6, 1992, would be divided into three parts. The site at which the idol of Lord Ram had been placed was granted to Hindus in general, the Sunni Wakf Board got one third of the plot, and the Hindu sect Nirmohi Akhara got the remaining third.

The dispute:

The Babri Masjid was constructed in 1528 by Mir Baqi on the orders of Babar, the first Mughal emperor of India, and was named after him. According to Hindus, Mir Baqi built mosque after destroying a pre-existing Ram temple at the site. HIndus believe that the site is the birthplace of Lord Ram, the 7th avatar of Hindu deity Vishnu. Muslims and other non-Muslim critics and historians claim that there is no historical record indicating any destruction, or even the existence of a Hindu Temple at the site when Mir Baqi erected the Masjid.

Beginning of conflicts:

On the midnight of 22 December 1949, when the police guards were asleep, statues of Ram and Sita were quietly brought into the mosque and erected. The mischief was played with the idols, in a bid to convert the existing mosque into a temple. Then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to the Uttar Pradesh chief minister, G B Pant, demanding their removal because “a dangerous example is being set there.” Faizabad deputy commissioner K K Nayar, who later joined the Hindu nationalist Jana Sangh Party and then became a member of the parliament, dismissed Nehru’s concerns and refused to remove the idols. After that the mosque was locked. The gates of Babri Masjid remained locked for the next 40 years.

In 1989, Nehru’s grandson, Rajiv Gandhi, ordered it to be reopened in fear of losing populist sentiments. It was then Babri Masjid gained some function as Hindu temple. The next three years BJP leaders along with RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal workers ran a shrill campaign to build a temple for Lord Ram at the disputed site. On December 6, 1992, when kar sevaks who were mainly gathered in Ayodhya following the rath yatra of L K Advani, moved towards the mosque and demolished the 400-year old monument. The Central government of prime minister P V Narasimha Rao and security officers at the place acted as mere spectator. And rest is the history.

What India has lost?

For years, the Ayodhya issue has been a searing political issue and elections have been fought over it far too many times in the past decades. The demolition is a blot on Indian democracy and shook the foundation of the country. The dispute was creation of British colonialists who erected a fence in 1859 around the monument, and ordered that Hindus would enter from the East gate and Muslims from the North gate, to divide the people on religious lines. Congress and BJP have been following the ‘divide and rule’ policy for political gain post independence.

After British, BJP and Congress has been using the Ayodhya issue as political tool. Due to this, the rift between Hindus and Muslims has widened which often result into communal clashes. Both BJP and Congress have been polarising the public opinion into hindutava and secular. BJP questions the appeasement policy of secular parties, while the Congress accuse the saffron outfit of playing communal politics. Between all this allegations and counter allegations, the guilty went scot free.

The demolition wasn’t just destruction of a historical monument but it infused the poison of hatred among people. The communal politics of BJP and appeasement policy of Congress are detestable. While both the major parties are at loggerheads with each other, the victims of communal riots that broke out after the demolition, are still waiting for justice.