Ayodhya’s Ram Temple: Five Centuries Of Wait Comes To An End, Know Timeline

New Delhi: A nearly five centuries of wait is coming to an end on Monday as Ayodhya does ‘Pran Pratishtha’ for the Ram Temple. All these years, historians have put up various timelines of events. Here’s a timeline.

1528: According to various versions, including government gazettes, Mughal emperor Babur’s general Mir Baqi constructed a mosque after demolishing a temple at Lord Ram’s birthplace in Ayodhya’s Ramkot.

1853: The first account of violence over Babri mosque is recorded from the British era in 1853. During the rule of Nawab Wajid Shah of Awadh, a Hindu sect Nirmohis emphasised that a Hindu temple was razed during Babur’s era to construct the Babri mosque. As it escalated, in 1859, the Britishers installed a fence to divide the site into two sections. Muslims were allowed to pray within the mosque, while the outer court was designated for the Hindu side’s prayers.

1885: Mahant Raghubir Das submitted a plea in the Faizabad district court in January 1885 requesting approval to construct a canopy on the Ramchabutra, a raised platform outside the mosque. The court rejected the plea.

1949: This year was the turning point in the chain of events. On September 23, 1949, the idol of Lord Ram appeared inside the Babri masjid. The Hindus claimed the deity had manifested himself at the site.

1950: A plea was filed by one Gopal Singh Visharad before a Faizabad court seeking permission to worship the deity. Ayodhya resident Hashim Ansari also approached the court saying the idols should be removed and it be allowed to remain a masjid. With two pleas in the court, the government locked the place. However, priests were allowed to perform daily puja.

1961: Then, years later, a petition was filed in Faizabad civil court seeking restoration of the property to Muslims by the Sunni Central Waqf Board declaring Babri Mosque as property of the Board.

1980s: A committee, led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad party (VHP), began work on “liberating” the birthplace of Lord Ram and paved the way for the construction of a temple. In 1988, on the plea of Hari Shankar Dubey, the Ayodhya court ordered the opening of the mosque for Hindus to offer prayers. The Muslim faction held a protest against the order and formed the Babri Mosque Action Committee in protest.

Later, in compliance with the court’s directive, the then-Rajiv Gandhi government unlocked the gates of Babri Masjid. In 1989, VHP began the construction of the Ram Temple on the land beside Babri Masjid. A plea was filed again, this time by a former VHP Vice-President, seeking the relocation of the mosque. With four pending suits in the Faizabad court, the cases were transferred to a special bench of the High Court.

Historic Rath Yatra In 1990: Bhartiya Janta Party veteran, then a stalwart leader, Lal Krishna Advani organised a massive Rath Yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh. The primary motive was to support the cause of the Ram Temple movement almost at its peak during that time. Thousands of kar sevak participated in the procession along with volunteers.

The yatra began in Somnath on September 25, 1990, and travelled through numerous villages and cities covering around a distance of 300 kilometers each day. Advani, and other leaders made speeches, and addressed rallies. Communal riots broke out in the country. The then UP CM Mulayam Singh Yadav also gave orders to fire at kar sevaks gathering around the Babri Masjid in Oct 1990.

1992: The most crucial event transpired on Dec 6, 1992, when thousands of kar sevaks, Ram Temple supporters and members of VHP, Shiv Sena gathered and demolished the disputed structure. This intensified the communal fire in the country.

Gujarat riots 2002: The aftermath of the demolition of Babri mosque continued to wreak havoc in the country for years. The action triggered widespread communal riots resulting in the loss of at least 2,000 lives

2003: The Archaeological Survey of India conducted a survey at the disputed site and reported evidence of a significant Hindu complex beneath the mosque. The Muslim side rejected the claims

2010: Allahabad High Court, after a thorough hearing in the case, divided the land into three parts: one-third was allocated to Ram Lalla, represented by the Hindu Mahasabha; one-third to the Islamic Waqf Board; and the remaining one-third to the Nirmohi Akhara.

2011: All three sides approached the Supreme Court against the Allahabad High Court verdict. The apex court put a stay on the HC order. In 2017, the top court called for an out-of-court settlement.

2019: The Supreme Court referred the case for mediation. However, it decided to transfer it to the constitution bench after no common ground was reached during mediation between the parties. The court then heard the case on a daily basis and reserved the judgement on August 16, 2019.

Nov 9, 2019: The five-judge constitution bench delivered the verdict in favour of Ram Lalla awarding the disputed land of 2.77 acres to a trust, to be established by the Government of India, for the construction of the Ram Temple. Apart from this, the court also directed the government to allocate an alternative five acres of land at a different location to the Sunni Waqf Board for the construction of a mosque.

2020: The idol of Ram Lalla was shifted from a tent to a fibre temple and on August 5, the same year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Ram Temple.

2024: After four years of construction, Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla is being held today, January 22, and the temple will then be opened for others after the ceremony.

                                                                                                                                                                                                    (As compiled by Times Now)