Ram Temple Inauguration: The Ram temple in Ayodhya is just a few days away from being inaugurated as the Pran Pratishtha (consecration) of the Ram Lalla idol is scheduled to take place on January 22. The consecration ceremony is set to take place between 12:15 pm and 12:45 pm in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, UP Governor Anandiben Patel, and president of the temple trust Mahant Nritya Gopal, on January 22.
Ram Temple and disputes pertaining to its construction have been one of the biggest chapters in India’s political history, which has resulted in the rise and downfall of political parties and figures and has also been a way of luring voters in elections in a bid to attain power.
The issue of Ram Mandir, which dominated Indian politics in the 1990s, has a huge history that saw a plethora of events, from court cases to land disputes to riots and mass movements.
History Of Ram Temple
1853: When It All Began
The history of the Ram Temple dates back to the British period. The first episode of religious violence over the site of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya occurred in 1853. The masjid was constructed by Mughal Emperor Babar in the year 1528. According to a Times of India report, under the rule of Nawab Wajid Shah of Awadh, the Nirmohis, a Hindu sect, emphasised that a Hindu temple was demolished during Babur’s era to build the mosque.
A few years later, the Britishers made a partition at the site and divided it into two sections with the help of a fence. Muslims were given permission to pray within the mosque, while the outer court was granted to Hindus.
1858: Puja Inside Babri Masjid
The issue of Ram Temple saw its first brush with the law in the year 1858. In a first, an FIR was filed on November 28 against a group of Nihang Sikhs who had conducted rituals inside the Babri Masjid.
Notably, the FIR acted as key evidence in the 1,045-page verdict by the Supreme Court in 2019, as per an India Today report.
Sheetal Dubey, the station house officer of Avadh, wrote in his report: “Mr Nihang Singh Faqir Khalsa, a resident of Panjab, organised Havan and Puja of Guru Gobind Singh and erected a symbol of Sri Bhagwan, within the premises of the Masjid,” as quoted in an Indian Express report.
During the hearing of the Ram Janmabhoomi case in the apex court, the Hindu side produced a report dating back to November 28, 1858, submitted by Dubey. The report threw light on an incident when havan and puja were held inside the Babri mosque by Nihang Sikh Baba Fakir Singh Khalsa, as per the India Today report.
As per the report, Baba Fakir Singh barged inside the mosque, raising slogans in the glory of the 10th Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, and erected a symbol of ‘Sri Bhagwan’ (Lord Ram). He also wrote ‘Ram Ram’ on the walls of the mosque, according to India Today.
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Singh carried out the rituals as other Nihang Sikhs, 25 in total, stood outside the mosque to prevent any outsider’s entry. They also built a platform inside the mosque on which an idol of Lord Ram was placed. In its verdict, the SC noted that a report was submitted by the Thanedar of Oudh on December 1, 1858, to summon Baba Faqir Singh, who was living within the “Masjid Janam Sthan.”
According to the report, he had taken a summons to Baba Faqir Singh and admonished him. Despite this, the Baba continued to insist that — “every place belonged to Nirankar (the formless divine).”
1885: Mahant Raghubar Das Moves Court, Seeks Approval to Construct Canopy On Ramchabutra
Raghubar Das, who was the mahant at the Ram chabutra outside the Babri Masjid, filed a suit in the Faizabad civil court against the Secretary of State for India in Council, seeking permission to build a makeshift temple there, as per the IE report. The suit was dismissed by the district court, and in the days ahead, subsequent civil appeals were also turned down by the district judge of Faizabad and the court of the judicial commissioner. In 1934, a riot led to the demolition of a portion of the structure, which the British rebuilt, as per the IE report.
1949: ‘Emergence’ of Ram Lalla Idol Inside Babri Masjid
The year 1949 was perhaps one of the most significant turning points in the entire Ram Temple movement. That year, an idol of Lord Ram surfaced inside the Babri Masjid. According to the Indian Express report, Abhiram Das, a Hindu priest, claimed he had a recurring dream of Lord Ram appearing under the main dome of the Masjid. On the night of December 22, that year, idols were found at the place he had mentioned.
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Following this, many Hindus began to believe that it was a miracle. On December 23, Faizabad DM KK Nayar apprised UP Chief Minister Govind Ballabh Pant about a group of Hindus entering the site and placing the idol. The matter reached the Faizabad court after a petition was filed by Gopal Singh Visharad to worship the deity. Hashim Ansari, a resident of Ayodhya, approached the court seeking the removal of idols and for it to be allowed to remain a masjid.
An FIR was filed, the gates to the structure were locked by the government, and the city magistrate attached the property. The priests, however, were allowed to perform daily puja.
1961: Sunni Central Waqf Board Moves Faizabad Civil Court
A petition was filed pleading for the restoration of the property to Muslims, as per the TOI report. The Sunni Central Waqf Board filed a suit in Faizabad civil court, declaring Babri Mosque as the property of the board.
1980s: Campaign To Build Ram Mandir Launched
A committee with the objective of “liberating” the birthplace of Lord Ram and constructing a temple was established, as per the TOI report. The committee was led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad Party (VHP). In 1986, the Ayodhya court ordered the mosque to be opened for Hindus.
The order to open the gates of the mosque was issued by the court based on a plea by Hari Shankar Dubey. The district judge in Ayodhya issued an order to open the gates of the mosque, clearing the way for Hindus to worship there.
In response to the decision given by the court, the Babri Mosque Action Committee was formed by Muslims in protest. As per the directive issued by the court, the government under Rajiv Gandhi ordered the unlocking of the gates of Babri Masjid.
1989: VHP Lays Foundation Of Ram Temple
The construction of the Ram Temple was initiated by the VHP on the adjacent land to Babri Masjid. A case was filed by former VHP Vice President Justice Deoki Nandan Agarwal, urging the relocation of the mosque. The four pending subsequent suits in the Faizabad court were transferred to a special bench of the High Court.
1990: Lal Krishna Advani’s Rath Yatra
The Rath Yatra launched by BJP stalwart Lal Krishna Advani was another defining moment in the Ram Mandir movement, which witnessed the appreciation of the masses back then. The BJP’s then-president, Advani, led the Rath Yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya to express support for the Ram Temple agitation.
The Yatra, which commenced in Somnath, Gujarat, on September 25, 1990, included thousands of kar sevaks, or volunteers, affiliated with the Sangh Parivar.
1992: Babri Masjid Demolition
The demolition of Babri Masjid by kar sevaks in 1992 was undoubtedly the biggest triggering point that led to political tensions and communal riots across the country, which resulted in the loss of at least 2,000 lives. The demolition took place in the presence of leaders from the Shiv Sena, VHP, and BJP.
2003: ASI Survey Of Disputed Site
In 2003, a three-judge bench of the Allahabad High Court, which was hearing to determine the ownership of the disputed land, ordered the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to excavate the site and determine if it was a temple earlier. The ASI surveyed the disputed site and reported evidence of a significant Hindu complex beneath the mosque, as per the TOI report.
Muslim organisations, however, raised objections to these findings, which led to ongoing disagreements regarding the historical interpretation of the site.
2010: Allahabad HC Divides Disputed Site In 3 Parts
In 2010, in the judgement delivered by the Allahabad High Court, it was ruled that the disputed land should be divided into three parts: one-third was allocated to Ram Lalla, represented by the Hindu Mahasabha; one-third went to the Islamic Waqf Board; and the remaining portion was given to the Nirmohi Akhara. In December of that year, the decision pronounced by the Allahabad HC was challenged by both the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha and the Sunni Waqf Board in the Supreme Court.
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2011: All 3 Sides Approach SC
The legal battle over the disputed site continued in 2011, with all three parties—Nirmohi Akhara, Ram Lalla Virajman, and the Sunni Waqf Board—knocking on the door of the apex court and challenging the Allahabad High Court verdict. The apex court stayed the HC order, splitting the disputed site into three parts.
2019: Supreme Court’s Landmark Judgement
In a landmark judgement given by the SC, a five-judge bench led by then Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi ruled in favour of Ram Lalla and stated that the entire land under dispute would be handed over to a trust formed by the government. As per the judgement, the trust will be given the responsibility of monitoring the construction of the Ram Temple at the site.
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2020: PM Modi Lays Foundation Stone For Ram Mandir Construction
PM Modi laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Ram Temple on August 5, 2020. He also unveiled a plaque and released a commemorative postal stamp.
2024: Consecration Ceremony
On January 22, a consecration ceremony (Pran Pratishtha) of Ram Lalla is set to take place in Ayodhya.