Ayodhya Ram Mandir, more than a house of faith: Its journey from 1528-2024

• The Ram Janambhoomi movement for a temple at Ayodhya has a timeline running over more than 200 years, with several milestones

• The events associated with the Ayodha's Ram Janmasthan have spanned the Mughal empire, colonial rule and the Bharatiya constitutional regime

The Hindu community claims it as the birthplace of Lord Ram, an incarnation of "Lord Vishnu". For this reason, the Hindus refer to the disputed site as Ram Janmabhumi or Ram Janmasthan (i.e. birth-place of Lord Ram). The Hindus assert that there existed at the disputed site an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Ram, which was demolished upon the conquest of the Indian sub-continent by Mughal Emperor Babur.

The Muslim community claims it as the site of the historic Babri Masjid built by or at the behest of the first Mughal Emperor, Babur on the vacant land.

• Though the significance of the site for the Hindus is not denied

Before independence

The temple land forms part of the village of Kot Rama Chandra or, as it is otherwise called, Ramkot at Ayodhya, in Pargana Haveli Avadh, of Tehsil Sadar in the District of Faizabad

According to the most popular version which finds mention in government gazettes, on the instructions of Mughal Emperor Babur a mosque was constructed by Mir Baqi who was the Commander of his forces, after razing a temple at ‘Ram’s birthplace’ in Ayodhya’s Ramkot.

In 1751, the Marathas appealed to the Nawab of Awadh, whom they had helped defeat Pathan forces in the doab region, to transfer control of "Ayodhya", "Kashi" and "Mathura" to them (former BJP Rajya Sabha MP Balbir Punj writes in his book Tryst With Ayodhya).

In 1756 too, when Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula sought their help against an imminent Afghan invasion, the Marathas requested that the three sites be transferred to them. However, the Nawab switched sides later, and the Maratha demand became irrelevant

In judicial records, the Ayodhya dispute dates back to 1822.

A court official called Hafizullah made a submission to the Faizabad court in 1822 that a mosque built by Babur on the birthplace of Lord Ram stood in proximity to Sita Rasoi in Ayodhya.

• In 1856-57, riots broke out between Hindus and Muslims in the vicinity of the structure.

• To prevent the disputes, the Britishers set up a grill-brick wall having a height of six or seven feet fence to partition the site into two sections. Muslims were granted permission to pray within the mosque, while the outer court was designated for Hindu use.

In January 1885, Janmasthan mahant Raghubar Das moved Sub-Judge court in Faizabad, to seek permission to build a temple at the Ram Chabutra, situated in the outer courtyard, measuring seventeen feet by twenty-one feet (close to the Masjid but within the complex). On 24 December 1885, the petition was dismissed noting that there was a possibility of riots breaking out between the two communities due to the proposed construction of a temple. The trial judge, however, observed that there could be no question or doubt regarding the possession and ownership of the Hindus over the Chabutra.

After 1947

In July 1949, a petition was made to the UP government that a temple should come up at the site.

• The government forwarded it to the district administration of Faizabad.

• City magistrate of Faizabad, Guru Dutt Singh, submitted a report in October 1949, saying the land belongs to the government and that people have faith in Ram Lalla and want a temple

• On 14 August 1949, the UP Hindu Mahasabha passed a resolution for the ‘liberation’ of "Ram Janmabhoomi at Ayodhya", "Krishna Janmabhoomi" at Mathura and the "Vishwanath temple" at Kashi

• Ram Lalla idols inside Babri Mosque - 1949

Idol of Lord Ram surfaces inside Babri Masjid. A suit was instituted in 1950 before the Civil Judge at Faizabad by a Hindu worshipper, Gopal Singh Visharad seeking a declaration that according to his religion and custom, he is entitled to worship the deity. Hashim Ansari, a resident of Ayodhya, approached the court saying the idols should be removed and it be allowed to remain a masjid. The government locked the place but priests were allowed to perform daily puja

• The then Prime minister directed the UP government to get the idol removed.

• However, City Magistrate Guru Dutt Singh, termed the “first Kar Sewak” by VHP leader Ashok Singhal, did not allow Chief minister Govind Ballabh Pant to enter Faizabad-Ayodhya and later resigned.

• District magistrate KK Nair also refused to remove the idol, citing law and order concerns.

• A petitioner filed a suit pleading for restoration of the property to Muslims. The Sunni Central Wakf Board filed suit in Faizabad civil court declaring Babri Mosque as property of board.

• Congress leader former UP minister Dau Dayal Khanna was the first politician to write to then Prime minister Indira Gandhi in May 1983 demanding the restoration of Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura to the Hindus.

• On 7 April and 8 April 1984, at a Dharma Sansad in Delhi, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Delhi announced the launch of a movement for the ‘liberation’ of the holy sites at "Ayodhya", "Mathura" and "Kashi".

Upon a plea by Hari Shankar Dubey, on December, 1986, Faizabad district judge KM Pandey issued an order to open the gates of the contested mosque, enabling Hindus to worship there.

• The judge later claimed in his book, Voice of conscience, that a black monkey sat on the roof of the courtroom when the hearing was on. When he delivered the judgment and went home, he saw the “same monkey” in his lawn, and saluted him, “treating him to be some Divine Power”.

• In response, Muslims formed the Babri Mosque Action Committee in protest.

In compliance with the court's directive, the government under Rajiv Gandhi ordered the unlocking of the gates of Babri Masjid

Prior to the court's decision, only a Hindu priest had the authority to conduct an annual puja. Following the verdict, all Hindus were granted access to the site, leading to the mosque assuming a dual role as a Hindu temple

• In mid-February 1986, the All-India Muslim Personal Board met in Delhi and urged political parties to support their demand for the handing over of the Babri Masjid to Muslims.

• On February 3, 1986, Hashim Ansari, one of the litigants who had filed a writ petition on behalf of the Sunni Waqf Board on 18 December 1961, seeking possession of the Babri Masjid, moved the Allahabad High Court.

The court noted that until further orders by it, the nature of the property shall not change.

• On 10 July 1989, the Allahabad HC decided to consolidate all suits related to the matter.

• In July 1989, the BJP plunged into the movement, passing its Palampur resolution that said the Ram Janmabhoomi should be handed over to the Hindus through a negotiated settlement or legislation

• In September 1989, the VHP announced it would take consecrated bricks (Ram Shila) from all over the country and perform a shilanyas (foundation-laying) for a Ram temple at Ayodhya on 10 October 1989.

• The Congress government permitted it.

• Rajiv Gandhi launched his 1989 Lok Sabha campaign from Ayodhya.

The foundation-laying ceremony was held on 9 November 1989, and Kameshwar Chaupal, a Dalit, laid the first Ram Shila. VHP initiated the construction of a Ram temple on the adjacent land to Babri Masjid. Justice Deoki Nandan Agarwal, former VHP Vice-President, filed a case requesting the relocation of the mosque. Subsequently, four pending suits in the Faizabad court were transferred to a special bench of the High Court

• On 25 September 1990, then BJP president LK Advani started a Rath Yatra from Somnath to Ayodhya. The primary objective of this rally was to express support for the Ram Temple agitation, which was being led by the VHP at that time. The procession included thousands of kar sevaks, or volunteers, affiliated with the Sangh Parivar.

• Commencing in Somnath, Gujarat, on 25 September 1990, the yatra traversed numerous villages and cities. Covering an approximate distance of 300 kilometers each day, LK Advani, leading the yatra, frequently addressed as many as six public rallies in a single day.

• There were riots in many parts of India

• On 23 October 1990, then Prime Minister VP Singh granted authorization to Lalu Prasad Yadav, the Chief Minister of Bihar, to arrest LK Advani. The then BJP president was taken into preventive custody as his procession crossed the border between Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

• The police fired on Kar Sewaks in Ayodhya on October 30 and November 2.

• Mulayam Singh Yadav was CM of UP.

On 6 December 1992, a mob demolished the Babri Masjid. The destruction of the mosque triggered widespread communal riots throughout the country, resulting in the loss of at least 2,000 lives during the violence.

On 7 January 1993, parliament passed the Acquisition of Certain Area at Ayodhya Act, through which the government acquired 67.03 acres of the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land. It also asked the SC to determine whether there was a temple at the site before the Babri Masjid.

ASI conducts survey- In 2003, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) surveyed the disputed site and reported evidence of a significant Hindu complex beneath the mosque. However, Muslim organizations disputed these findings, leading to ongoing disagreements regarding the historical interpretation of the site.

• The Justice Liberhan Commission report was submitted on 30 June 2009.

• It said the events of December 1992 were neither spontaneous nor unplanned.

• In April 2017, a special CBI court framed criminal charges against Advani, MM Joshi, Uma Bharti, and others.

On 30 September 2020, the court acquitted all 32 accused on grounds of inconclusive evidence

In 2010, the Allahabad high court delivered its judgment on the four title suits about the dispute. The High Court ruled that the disputed land should be divided into three parts: one-third allocated to Ram Lalla, represented by the Hindu Mahasabha; one-third to the Islamic Waqf Board; and the remaining third to the Nirmohi Akhara. Subsequently, in December, both the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha and the Sunni Waqf Board approached the Supreme Court, challenging the High Court's decision. All three sides approach Supreme Court in 2011 - All three parties, that is, the Nirmohi Akhara, Ram Lalla Virajman, and Sunni Waqf Board, appealed against the Allahabad High Court verdict.

The ruling was challenged in the Supreme Court by both Hindu and Muslim litigants. The Supreme Court stayed the HC order of splitting the disputed site in 3 parts. On 9 November 2019, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court issued a verdict ordering the disputed land of 2.77 acres to be transferred to a trust, to be established by the Government of India, for the construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple. Additionally, the court directed the government to allocate an alternative five acres of land at a different prominent location to the Sunni Waqf Board for the construction of a mosque.

The five-judge bench that issued the order was led by the then Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi. The other four judges on the bench were Justice SA Bobde, Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice Ashok Bhushan, and Justice S Abdul Nazeer.

• The trust formed for the construction of the Ram temple was named 'Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Shetra'. This trust comprises 15 members

• The shilanyas of the ram temple was done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 August 2020, in Ayodhya. The Prime Minister also unveiled a plaque and released a commemorative postal stamp.

• The?pran?pratishtha, or?consecration,?of the?idol?of?Lord Ram?at?the?Ram Temple in Ayodhya?took?place?on 22 January, 2024,?amid?chanting?of hymns?and conduct?of rituals.

• PM Modi,?who?participated in?the?ceremony,?termed?it a historic?day and noted?the?fact?that?the temple?was?facilitated?by?a?judicial?decision.?