Lucknow, September 23: Lucknow Indians are anxiously waiting for the high court to deliver the verdict in a century-old religious dispute on September 24.
Around 6,000 people have died since December 6, 1992 when a mob of Hindu activists destroyed a 16th century mosque known as Babri Masjid in Ayodhya.
The mosque was built by Mughal emperor Babur’s lieutenant Mir Baqi in 1528. Hindus contend that the mosque was built after destroying a temple. They also claim that the very spot where the mosque once stood is the birthplace of Ram, a Hindu deity worshipped by millions.
Zafaryab Jilani, 60, leads a team of lawyers who represents Muslims in the court.
Jilani is also convener of the All India Babri Masjid Action Committee. In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, Jilani explained why Muslims have fought this messy and painfully long battle.
Experts:
What is the case in the high court about?
ZAFARYAB JILANI:
On December 23, 1949, some Hindus planted statues of Ram and his brother Laxman inside the Babri mosque.
The police locked up the mosque. Soon after, the then prime minister Jawahar Lal Nehru ordered the removal of the statues but Ayodhya’s then district magistrate declined to follow the instruction.
On January 16, 1950 a lawsuit was filed claiming that Hindus had been worshipping the deities at the mosque for a long time. The Muslims prayed in the mosque till December 22, 1949. The state government categorically submitted in the court that the building had never been a temple and was always a mosque.
Another case was filed by a Hindu priest seeking permission to worship the deities inside the mosque. As the two cases lingered on, a third case was filed in 1959 demanding the handover of the mosque to Hindus.
Muslims filed a suit in 1961 demanding that the structure be declared a mosque and they be given possession.
In 1986, the government ordered the opening of the locks of the mosque and allowed Hindus to worship there, prompting angry Muslims to demand immediate settlement of the cases. The government then shifted all cases to a high court where a hearing began in 1989. The same year, a Hindu organisation, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), filed a case on behalf of the Hindu deity Ram, and sought the demolition of the mosque and construction of a temple. Now the high court will decide on these cases.
Has the court taken cognisance of the Archaeological Survery of India (ASI) report that surveyed the mosque site?
Yes, but we believe that ASI findings are questionable. The ASI says that there was a 12th century structure of a non-residential building under the mosque. The ASI found a wall built in two phases — first pre-12th century and subsequently in the 12th or 13th century. We have argued that 1190 AD was the beginning of the Muslim period in Ayodhya and the Muslim kingdom was established in 1206 and the Hindu kingdom ended in 1196.
So if we believe that this wall can’t be of any temple… who would have built a temple then? No statue was found at the site. The ASI contended that the structure resembled a 12th century Hindu temple but refrained from categorically describing it as a temple.
The ASI also found some animal bones and we believe that there is no place for bones in a Hindu temple.
Our archaeologists testified in the court that the bones belonged to animals that were eaten by humans. All archaeologists who testified from our side were Hindus. The ASI is silent on the bones.
What are you fighting for?
We say that this building was never a temple. The Babri mosque was not constructed after demolishing any temple. And this is not the birthplace of Ram.
How can you say so?
Because the Hindus themselves never believed this to be Ram’s birthsite till the 19th century. In 1885, a Hindu priest filed a suit claiming an elevated courtyard located in the outer portion of the mosque as Ram’s birthplace.
In a site plan filed along with that suit, the Hindu priest identified the building as a mosque. This is one of the most important pieces of evidence produced by us proving that till 1885 Hindus did not call the mosque the birth place of Ram.
Even if the high court believes that what you are saying is correct, what exactly are you trying to achieve?
It is the question of assertion of our [Muslims’] right. Should we lose the right merely because they [Hindus] are the majority?
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Lucknow High Court in Uttar Pradesh where a decision on the Babri Masjid mosque is to be made.
The Muslims prayed in the mosque till December 22, 1949. The state government categorically submitted in the court that the building was always a mosque.
–Agencies