SC to give Ayodya judgement

The Supreme Court today declared that the verdict in the Ramjanmbhoomi-Babri Masjid Ayodhya land dispute case, will be announced at 10.30 am on Saturday, November 9. Ayodhya has turned into a fortress ahead of the crucial judgement, with the Centre deploying more than 4000 paramilitary forces.

A five-judge Constitution bench, headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, had reserved the judgement on October 16 after a marathon hearing of 40 days in the decades-old temple-mosque dispute — the second longest proceedings in its history.

The Ayodhya dispute is a political, historical and socio-religious debate in India, centred on a plot of land in the city of Ayodhya, located in Faizabad district, Uttar Pradesh. The issues revolve around the control of a site traditionally regarded among Hindus to be the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama, the history and location of the Babri Masjid at the site, and whether a previous Hindu temple was demolished or modified to create the mosque.

The Babri Masjid was destroyed during a political rally which turned into a riot on 6 December 1992. A subsequent land title case was lodged in the Allahabad High Court, the verdict of which was pronounced on 30 September 2010. In the judgment, the three judges of the Allahabad High Court ruled that the 2.77 acres (1.12 ha) of Ayodhya land be divided into three parts, with ​1⁄3 going to the Ram Lalla or Infant Rama represented by the Hindu Maha Sabha, ​1⁄3 going to the Sunni Waqf Board and the remaining ​1⁄3 going to Nirmohi Akhara. The judgment affirmed that the disputed land was the birthplace of Rama as per the faith and belief of Hindus, and that the Babri Masjid was built after the demolition of a Hindu temple, noting that it wasn’t built in accordance with the tenets of Islam.

Police have been deployed in huge number across cities and villages. The leaves of all police personnel have been cancelled. Police have appealed people not to believe any rumour and misinformation. People should not share or forward any offensive post, statement, video or audio clip.