Decades of disputes and riots later, 2019 November saw the historic judgment on the site of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya which was a huge victory for the devotees of Lord Ram. The much-awaited justice takes another step forward on August 5th, 2020 with the auspicious occasion of Bhoomi Pujan.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay down the foundation brick of the Ram Mandir and inaugurate the beginning of the construction of the monument.
On 5th morning, PM Modi travelled to Ayodhya for the ceremony. Around 170 eminent figures were invited to the ceremony including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat. Home Minister Amit Shah a couple of days back was tested positive for Covid-19 and is currently hospitalized because of which he could not attend the festival.
Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee tweeted regarding the ceremony related to Ram Mandir,
“Hindu Muslim Sikh Isaai Aapas mein hain Bhai Bhai! Mera Bharat Mahaan, Mahaan Hamara Hindustan. Our country has always upheld the age-old legacy of unity in diversity, and we must preserve this to our last breath!”
It is important to know the history that has given rise to the victory of millions of Indians.
Root of the dispute
The dispute as stated earlier dates to decades back but the seed of dispute was planted centuries back in 1528.
According to Hindu legends, Lord Ram’s ‘Janamabhoomi’ or motherland was Ayodhya. On the same site in 1528, Babur, the Mughal emperor constructed the Babri Masjid. Not just in the same city, but arguably in the same location.
Long history of the disputed land.
In 1853, the first instance of violence between the two communities was recorded. Between 1853 and 1949, several violent riots to gain control of the area took place between the Hindus and Muslims. While for Hindus the place had religious and strong cultural roots, it was also important to Muslims for historical ties to Mughal emperor, Babur.
In 1859, a fence was erected in the site to accommodate and allow entry to people of both the communities. The British Government allotted the inner courts of the construction to the Muslims and outer courts to Hindus. But that obviously did not buy peace.
1949 saw an escalation in the violence when a Ram and Sita idol was placed on the temple. Muslims caused widespread chaos and riots which lead to the site being declared disputed by the Government. The area was shut down, by the order of the Government.
The dispute resurfaced in 1984 when a committee was created to establish a Ram temple on the site. 5 years later, VHP laid the foundation for the temple.
The dispute over the piece of land took an ugly turn in 1992 when Babri Masjid was demolished by kar sevaks. This dreadful incident led to the formation Liberhan Commission to probe into the incident.
Although back in 2010, the Allahabad High Court had decided that the site should be split, the SC had suspended the ruling in 2011 as it was hoping for an out of court settlement. After a delay in 2019 March, the case was referred for mediation.
Multiple failures to settle the case, forced the SC to begin the hearing in August which concluded in October 2019.
In November a unanimous decision was taken by the Supreme Court and it was declared that a Ram Mandir will be built on the disputed ground while alternate 5 acres of land was given to Sunni Waqf board to build a mosque which they did not accept immediately.
After several failed petitions, in February 2020, the Sunni Waqf board accepted the land.
A long history of disputes was corrected in 2019 with an unbiased decision and a fresh new beginning is finally welcomed in 2020.
