At long last, nearly 28 years after the Babri Masjid was razed to ground by ‘karsevaks’, a special CBI court in Lucknow on Wednesday delivered a landmark verdict in the case and acquitted all 32 accused, including BJP leaders L.K. Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti, Kalyan Singh and Vinay Katiyar of conspiracy charges.
In the much-awaited judgement, the court said that the demolition of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya on 6 December 1992 was not planned and involved anti-social elements who got agitated and climbed the domes. “The accused tried to stop the demolition,” said special judge Surendra Kumar Yadav. “Merely giving a provocative speech was not enough to prove guilt,” he added. The court stated that there was no conclusive proof against the accused.
After being acquitted of all the charges in the Babri mosque case, Advani and Joshi hailed the court verdict. Advani described the judgement as vindication of his as well as the BJP’s faith in and commitment towards the “Ram Janmabhoomi Movement”. Advani also chanted “Jai Shri Ram” while reacting to the judgement.
Delivering the verdict, CBI judge S.K. Yadav said, “There was no conclusive proof against them. The demolition of the centuries-old mosque was not pre-planned… Those who climbed on the dome, they are anti-social elements.”
A total of 49 people were named as accused in the FIR lodged by the CBI, 17 of whom died during the course of the trial. The 32 accused include Advani and Joshi and Uma Bharti. Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh,Vinay Katiyar, Sadhvi Rithambara and Champat Rai, the general secretary of the trust in charge of constructing the temple, are also among the accused.
ADVANI, JOSHI WELCOME VERDICT
BJP veteran Advani welcomed the verdict of a special CBI court by chanting “Jai Shri Ram”.
“I feel blessed that this judgement has come in the footsteps of another landmark verdict of the Supreme Court given in November 2019, which paved the way for my long-cherished dream of seeing a grand Shri Ram Mandir at Ayodhya, the foundation-laying ceremony of which was held on 5 August 2020,” Advani, who was the face of the Ram Janambhoomi movement in December1992, said.
The 92-year-old veteran was seen watching news with his family as the verdict was passed and soon after he came out of his house and greeted the media while chanting the slogan of “Jai Shri Ram”. His daughter Pratibha Advani was seen holding his hands throughout the verdict. Murli Manohar Joshi too hailed the verdict.
“It’s a historic decision by the court. This proves that no conspiracy was hatched for the 6 December incident in Ayodhya. Our programme and rallies were not part of any conspiracy. We are happy, everyone should now be excited about Ram Mandir’s construction,” he said.
Advani was visited by top BJP leaders, including Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, shortly after the court acquitted him and all others accused in the more than two-decadeold Babri Masjid demolition case. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and senior BJP leader Ram Madhav were also seen welcoming the court’s judgment on Wednesday.