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This story is from September 30, 2020

Babri masjid demolition case verdict: Latest developments

A special court delivering the verdict in the Babri Masjid demolition case on Wednesday acquitted all the accused after 28 years, saying that the demolition of the mosque was not pre-planned. Ashok Singhal and other Sangh Parivar leaders wanted to save the structure as Ram Lalla statues were inside, the court said. The court proceedings were attended by 26 of the 32 accused.
Babri demolition case: All accused acquitted, judge says demolition was not pre-planned
NEW DELHI: Nearly 28 years after the demolition of the Babri masjid in Ayodhya, a special CBI court on Wednesday acquitted all the 32 people accused of conspiring to raze the structure among other charges, including BJP veterans L K Advani and MM Joshi, on the grounds of absence of any conclusive evidence against them.
Here are latest developments:
* Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has raised questions over the special CBI court decision to acquit all the accused in the Babri Masjid case and asserted that it was contrary to the Supreme Court's 2019 observation that the demolition of the structure was an "egregious violation of the rule of law".
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* Security has been stepped up in Mumbai in the wake of court verdict in the Babri masjid demolition case with police personnel deployed at sensitive locations in the metropolis, an official said. Police are taking adequate measures to maintain law and order in the financial capital and avoid any untoward incident.
* The ruling BJP in Gujarat along with the VHP and Pravin Togadia's Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad welcomed the CBI court's verdict. State BJP chief C R Paatil hailed the ruling as a "victory of truth".
* Senior lawyer and member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board Zafaryab Jilani said the verdict of a special court acquitting all the 32 accused in the Babri mosque demolition case would be challenged in the high court. He also indicated that the board might also be a party.

* The CBI will decide on filing an appeal against the special court verdict. "After a copy of today's verdict is received, it would be sent to the CBI headquarters where it would be studied by the legal department and a decision on filing an appeal would be taken as per its suggestion," CBI counsel Lalit Singh said.
* The RSS welcomed the special CBI court's verdict acquitting all accused in the Babri masjid demolition case and called for harmony in society to face challenges before the country.
* The Congress demanded that the government go in appeal against the acquittal. The Congress has said the decision of the court runs counter to the decision of the Supreme Court of India, as the BJP-RSS were part of the conspiracy to demolish the mosque.
* AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi termed the special CBI court's verdict acquitting all the accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case as a black day in the history of Indian judiciary. Terming the judgment as 'obnoxious', the Hyderabad MP said the verdict satisfied the collective conscience of the Hindutva ideology and its followers.
* Veteran BJP leader LK Advani welcomed the court verdict by chanting 'Jai Shri Ram', and said it vindicates his personal and BJP's belief and commitment towards the 'Ram Janmabhoomi Movement'.
* Reading out the operative parts of the verdict, Judge SK Yadav said that the demolition of the Babri Masjid was not pre-planned.
* Ashok Singhal and other sangh parivar leaders wanted to save the structure as Ram Lalla statues were inside, the court said.
* All allegations were because of political rivalry. We don't conspire but create mantras. The judgement is welcomed," said Sadhvi Rithambara, leader, Vishwa Hindu Parishad.
* VHP spokesperson Sharad Sharma said that there is no celebration that is being planned. But it is a big day. It took time but finally, the accused have been acquitted
* I wholeheartedly welcome the judgement by the Special Court in Babri masjid demolition case. The judgement vindicates my personal and BJP's belief and commitment toward the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, said Lal Krishna Advani after being acquitted.
* Following the verdict, law & justice minister Ravi Shankar Prasad arrived at the residence of senior BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani, who was has also been acquitted.
* Total 26 accused are present in the court including Sakshi Maharaj, Sadhvi Rithambhara, Vinay Katiyar, Champat Rai and Pawan Pandey, as CBI judge SK Yadav Accused arrives in the court.
* Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Kalyan Singh, Uma Bharti, Satish Pradhan and Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, all accused in the case, attend proceedings via video conferencing.
* Ramji Gupta, national president, Lakshman Sena, who is also an accused in Babri demolition case, arrived at the court. In a brief interaction with media, he said, "This is an auspicious day. Even if the verdict does not come in our favour, we will go to jail. We are worshippers of Ram and we will serve Ram."
* Another accused, Pawan Pandey ex-MLA Shiv Sena upon arrival at the court, said during an interaction with media persons, said, "If I get punishment will consider this birth successful in service of Lord Ram".
* Lawyers of the accused men have prepared bail bonds in advance for their immediate release in case they are sentenced.
* Notably, the CBI has filed 400-page written arguments in connection with the case.
* The Supreme Court had earlier extended till August 31 the tenure of special CBI Judge SK Yadav and directed him to complete the trial and deliver the judgment in the case by that time. The apex court had later granted another month to special CBI judge SK Yadav to pronounce the judgment in the case.
Who are the accused
Following the demolition of the Babri Masjid, two FIRs were filed—FIR NO 197 which was against 'lakhs of kar sevaks' and FIR NO 198 which was against 49 functionaries of Sangh Parivar for conspiracy.
Of the 48 people against whom charges were framed, 17 have died during the trial.
Of the remaining, which includes BJP stalwarts LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Kalyan Singh and Uma Bharti, the last two are currently laid low with Covid-19.
All four BJP leaders — Advani, Joshi, Bharti and Singh — are in the twilight of their political careers and aren't members of Parliament anymore. None of them holds any executive post in the party either. Another prominent accused — Champat Rai — is the general secretary of the trust tasked with the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
What are the charges
The main charge against the accused is of hatching a serious criminal conspiracy. The charge had earlier been dropped by a trial court in 2001 and the Allahabad High Court had upheld that verdict but it was restored after the SC’s order in 2017.
Among the charges against the accused is "injuring or defiling a place of worship".
However, last year, the SC awarded the disputed site to the Hindu religious organisations for the construction of the Ram temple while directing the state to allot an alternative site to Sunni Waqf Board for the construction of a mosque, in lieu of Babri Masjid.
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