Babri Mosque case: 2 new judges join hearing on Jan. 29

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) – Apex court of India on Friday reconstituted a five-member bench for the hearing of sensitive Babri Mosque case, local media said.

Indian Supreme Court had on Jan. 10 deferred the hearing of the case on the decades-old Babri Mosque dispute between Muslims and Hindus when one of the five judges recused himself from the case.

According to local broadcaster NDTV, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi Friday reconstituted the five-judge constitution by adding two new judges to the bench which will hear the case on Jan. 29.

Justices Abdul Nazeer and Ashok Bhushan have joined the bench of judges, including Justice SA Bobde and Justice DY Chandrachud besides chief justice of India.

“The bench led by chief justice will on Tuesday decide on a schedule and the frequency of hearings in the case,” the NDTV reported.

The ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and some of its allies and right-wing groups want a special executive order or ordinance to enable the start of construction before the general elections are announced, the news report said.

It is widely speculated that if the permission is granted, it would bring massive voter share to BJP in the upcoming elections.

However, in an interview to Indian news agency ANI this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that “any decision on passing an executive order on the Ram temple issue cannot be made unless the judicial process is over”.

- Babri Mosque dispute

The Babri Mosque is said to have been built by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1526.

In 1885, a Hindu religious body filed a case in Faizabad court asking for permission to construct a temple to honor Ram inside the premises of the Babri Mosque. The permission was denied.

In 1949, a group of Hindus entered the premises of the mosque and installed an idol of Ram there. The idol was not removed and it was locked by the administration. However, an official and a Hindu priest were given charge to look after the place.

In 1986, the district administration of Faizabad, under which Ayodhya city comes, opened the premises to Hindus, allowing them to carry out their rituals.

The situation remained calm until December 1992, when thousands of activists belonging to extremist Hindu groups and political parties along with BJP leaders entered Babri Mosque and demolished it.

The case over the dispute has been languishing in India’s legal system for years without any final outcome.