Lucknow: The following is the brief timeline of the historic case.
–1528-1529- A mosque was built on the site of the Ram Temple by Babar, founder of the Mughal Empire. The mosque was known as Babri Masjid.
–1850s- During the First War of Independence in 1857, the Hindus intensified their movement to liberate the Temple. Beginning of the dispute, which sparked communal riots. The Hindus sought possession of the site, refused by the British.
–1946- Akhil Bharatiya Ramayana Mahasabha, a wing of The Hindu Mahasabha, started an agitation for reclaiming the site.
–1949- An idol of Lord Ram appeared inside the mosque, sparking protest from the Muslims, after which both sides moved to court and filed a civil suit. The State government declared the entire area as ‘disputed’ and locked the gates until further orders.
–1950- Two suits were filed in a Faizabad civil court by the Hindus, seeking permission to worship the idols of Ram Lalla.
–1959- Nirmohi Akhara filed the third suit claiming to be the stakeholder of the site.
–1961- The Sunni Central Wakf Board of Uttar Pradesh moved the court demanding the removal of idols and possession of the site.
–1986- On the direction of the District Court, the place was unlocked and the shrine was reopened for the Hindus to worship.
–1992- The controversial Masjid was demolished on December 6, triggering communal riots at many places. The Government of India set up the Liberhan Commission to probe the incident.
–1993– On April 3, the Centre passed the ‘Acquisition of Certain Area at Ayodhya Act’ for the acquisition of land in the disputed site.
–1994- On October 24, the Supreme Court stated that a masjid was not an integral part of Islam.
–2010- In a 2:1 majority, the Allahabad High Court, on September 30, ruled a three-way division of the site between the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara, and Ram Lalla.
–2011- The Supreme Court stayed the Allahabad High Court verdict.
–2016- Former Union Minister Subramanian Swamy filed a petition in the apex court seeking construction of Ram Temple at the site.
–2017- On March 21, the then CJI JS Khehar suggested out-of-court settlement among all the parties. On August 7, the top court constituted a three-judge bench to hear pleas challenging the 1994 verdict of the Allahabad High Court.
–2019- The apex court referred the case for mediation, asked the panel to complete the required proceedings within 8 weeks. However, the panel failed to come to any conclusion.
–August 06, 2019- The top court began marathon hearing on a day-to-day basis. Hearing goes on for 40 days.
–October 16, 2019- The Supreme Court reserved its judgment in the case.
–November 9, 2019- The Supreme Court delivers its verdict in favor of the Ram Temple.
–September 30, 2020-A special CBI court acquits all 32 accused in the demolition case.
(VP)
