AYODHYA (INDIA) – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil a ceremonial plaque in the northern city of Ayodhya in the state of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday to flag-off the construction of a Hindu temple on the site where a mosque was demolished three decades ago, sparking riots across the country.
The kickstarting of the construction is the fulfillment of the long-pending demand by Modi’s Hindu nationalist party to have a temple constructed on the controversial spot.
This comes after a Supreme Court order last year handed over the custody of the site to the Hindus in exchange for a plot for the Muslims to build a mosque, ending decades of litigation.
Two prominent Muslims who witnessed the riots said they would attend the ceremony, a key Muslim NGO said the Babri mosque “was, and will always be,” one.
“Usurpation of the land by an unjust, oppressive, shameful and majority-appeasing judgment can’t change its status,” the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board Tweeted. “No need to be heartbroken. Situations don’t last forever.”
Many Hindus believe the deity Ram was born on the exact spot where the mosque was built in the 16th century by Muslim Mughal rulers. In 1992, it was brought down by a violent Hindu mob sparking riots that left about 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead.
Modi will offer prayers at a temple on the shores of the Sarayu River before going to the construction site at noon.
The town is under tight security and crowds have thronged it to watch the function paying scant regard for social distancing or personal protection.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field