Babri Masjid case: All 32 accused, including LK Advani, have been acquitted.
All 32 accused in the 28-year-old Babri demolition case were acquitted today by a special CBI court in Lucknow.
The demolition of the mosque "was not pre-planned", Special Judge SK Yadav said today as he said the leaders accused, including BJP founder-members - LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi - tried to stop the demolition by "anti-social elements". The Babri Masjid stood at the Ram Janmabhoomi site in Ayodhya.
Six of the 32 accused, including LK Advani, MM Joshi, Uma Bharti, joined through video conferencing; they were not present in the court.
LK Advani, MM Joshi and BJP leaders across the country welcomed the verdict as they said this was "the victory of truth".
"The judgment vindicates my personal and the BJP's belief and commitment towards the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. I also feel blessed that this judgment 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 Ram Mandir at Ayodhya, the foundation-laying ceremony of which was held on August 5," Mr Advani, 92, said in a statement.
However, the Congress and other opposition parties expressed their discontent. "The decision of the Special Court to acquit all the accused in #BabriMasjidDemolitionCase runs counter to Supreme Court Judgement as also the Constitutional spirit," Congress's Randeep Singh Surjewala said in a tweet.
Here are the highlights on Babri Masjid Case verdict:
Kalyan Singh Expresses Happiness Over Babri Mosque Court VerdictFormer Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh on Wednesday expressed happiness over the Babri mosque verdict which acquitted him and 31 others of involvement in the destruction of the shrine 28 years ago.
Singh is recuperating from coronavirus in Yashoda super speciality hospital in Ghaziabad. He was admitted there on September 16, Medical Superintendent of the hospital Anuj Agarwal said in a press note.
The former chief minister expressed happiness over the verdict and a doctors'' team offered him sweets, it said.
His son, Rajveer Singh, congratulated him on the telephone, Agarwal said.
Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand BJP units welcomed the Special CBI Court's verdict.
Demolition Of Structure Brought Out Truth About Existence Of Temple In Ayodhya: Dilip GhoshWest Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh on Wednesday said that the truth about the existence of a temple beneath the Babri Masjid came to light only because the disputed structure was demolished.
He lauded the acquittal of all the accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case by a special CBI court in Lucknow as the "second victory of the Hindu community".
The BJP MP also claimed that the case over the demolition of the structure was filed to appease a specific community and settle political scores.
"There was a structure. But had it not been destroyed, the evidence that a temple existed there would have never been come out. Documents also supported that a temple existed there," Mr Ghosh said.
"This case was not at all needed as the construction of Ram Mandir has already started. Complaints (about the demolition of Babri Masjid) were filed to appease a specific community and settle political scores. Today's court verdict is the second victory of the Hindu community," he said, news agency PTI reported.
I Expected A Different Outcome: Ex-Home Secretary On Babri Demolition CaseRetired bureaucrat Madhav Godbole on Wednesday said he was expecting a "different result" in the Babri mosque demolition case.
Mr Godbole was Union home secretary when the demolition of Babri mosque took place in 1992.
Mr Godbole said there could be some difference of opinion over the verdict on the ownership of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case in Ayodhya.
"But in this (Babri mosque demolition) case, wherein a criminal offence was registered, I thought the court would do proper verification before giving the verdict," he told PTI.
He added that because of the Supreme Court, the case at least came to this stage.
"As the case was being heard on a daily basis, I was expecting a different result, but that decision did not come. This result has come as a surprise to me," Mr Godbole said.
"The trial had been going on since the last several years. Hundreds of witnesses and thousands of documents were examined and now the court is coming to the conclusion that there was not enough evidence. This is something difficult to accept," he said, news agency PTI reported.
Babri Case Verdict: Jamiat Raises Questions Over Acquittal Of Accused, Cites 2019 Supreme Court ObservationProminent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind on Wednesday 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".
All the 32 accused in the Babri mosque demolition case, including BJP veterans L K Advani and MM Joshi, were acquitted by the special CBI court in Lucknow which said there was no conclusive proof against them.
Reacting to the development, Jamiat president Maulana Arshad Madani said the mosque was demolished in broad daylight and the world witnessed "under whose patronage the mosque was razed" and who was in power in UP at that time.
On November 9, 2019, a five-member constitutional bench of the Supreme Court, while delivering its judgment on Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute, had stated that the demolition of the mosque was an "egregious violation of the rule of law".
"The mosque was demolished under the patronage of some people and those who used the demolition of the mosque for rise of their politics were honourably acquitted," he said in a statement.
"Is this justice or is it the failure of justice? Will this decision restore public confidence in the court," Mr Madani asked, news agency ANI reported.
Verdict After Long Wait, But Truth Has Won: Indore MP On Babri Demolition CaseAsserting that the decision of the special CBI court to acquit all the accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case came after a long wait of 28 years, BJP MP from Indore, Shankar Lalwani, on Wednesday said that finally "truth" has won.
"Lies can shroud the truth for some time, but it can never be hidden. The allegations made by the then Congress government on our saints and senior leaders have been rejected by the honorable court and the truth has won...," he stated in a tweet in Hindi.
He told ANI that the decision came after a long wait of 28 years. "The court clearly stated that the accused had no intention to damage the structure. On the contrary, they were trying to stop the demolition. The decision of the honourable court is welcoming," Mr Lalwani said, adding it will give a boost to the building of the Ram Temple.
"I am happy that this decision came after the Ram temple construction began under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Every person should accept this decision," he said.
Security Stepped Up In Mumbai In Wake Of Babri Demolition Case VerdictSecurity 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 on Wednesday.
Police are taking adequate measures to maintain law and order in the financial capital and avoid any untoward incident, he said.
Police personnel in strength have been deployed at important and sensitive locations, and local religious leaders have also been roped in to maintain peace, the official said.
Earlier in the day, all the 32 accused in the Babri mosque demolition case, including BJP veterans L K Advani and MM Joshi, were acquitted by a special CBI court in Lucknow.
Police have appealed to people to maintain peace and not to believe in rumours, and immediately contact law enforcement officials if they come across any suspicious person or activities, he said.
Due to the pandemic situation, prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC are already in place in the metropolis, restricting movement of people and non-essential activities.
Welcome CBI Court's Judgment, Don't Create Any New Dispute: Iqbal AnsariWelcoming the decision of a special CBI court to acquit all accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case, Iqbal Ansari -- who was one of the litigants in the Ayodhya land dispute case -- on Wednesday urged the nation not to create any new dispute.
All accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case, including senior BJP leaders Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharati, and Kalyan Singh, besides Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, were acquitted by the special CBI court in Lucknow on Wednesday.
Mr Ansari said that everybody knows what happened in Ayodhya.
"Several people had filed cases in connection with it. But we want the dispute to end and not escalate. We respect the Constitution and the court's judgment. There should be no new dispute in the country now," he said, adding the CBI case should have ended last year with the Supreme Court order on the disputed site in Ayodhya.
"When the Supreme Court judgment on the Babri Masjid site came in 2019, the whole country welcomed it. It's good that the CBI case has also come to an end today. This matter should have ended on November 9, 2019, only; it got unnecessarily stretched for a year," Mr Ansari said.
Vindication Of Truth And Justice: Vishva Hindu Parishad On Babri Demolition Judgmenthe acquittal of all the accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case by a special court on Wednesday "is a vindication of truth and justice", said the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), which spearheaded the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.
After the verdict was delivered by the special CBI court in Lucknow, VHP international working president Alok Kumar said it took 28 years for courts to deliver justice.
"This judgment now hopefully draws the final curtains on an issue that had been agitating the Hindu psyche for some 472 years," he said.
Babri Masjid was built in 1528 by Mir Baqi, the commander of Mughal emperor Babur. The structure was demolished in December 1992 by "kar sevaks" who claimed that the mosque was built on the site of an ancient Ram temple, news agency PTI reported.
Babri Demolition Verdict: CPI(M) Calls Court Decision "A Travesty Of Justice"In a statement, CPI(M), today called the Babri demolition verdict "a travesty of justice."
"The verdict of the Special CBI Court at Lucknow acquitting all 32 accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case amounts to a travesty of justice. It took 28 long years for this verdict but not justice to be delivered. All the top leaders of the BJP-VHP-RSS who were present at the scene guiding the criminal act have been found to be innocent of the charge of conspiracy to demolish the mosque," the statement read.
"The Supreme Court in its Ayodhya judgment on November 8, last year had called the demolition an egregious violation of the law. Now, the Lucknow court has found the main perpetrators of this crime not guilty. This verdict will blemish the image of India as a secular-democratic country governed by the Constitution. The CBI must immediately appeal against this judgment," it further said.
Babri Demolition Verdict: Congress's Responds To Decision
Babri Demolition Verdict: Asaduddin Owaisi, AIMIM Chief, Says "Sad Day In History Of Indian Judiciary"
"Today is a sad day in the history of Indian judiciary. Now, the court says there was no conspiracy. Please enlighten me, how many days of months of preparations are required to disqualify an action from being spontaneous?": Asaduddin Owaisi, AIMIM chief on Babri Demolition
Babri Demlition Verdict: "Historic Moment For All Of Us," Says Sakshi Maharaj - Watch
Babri Case Verdict: Here is LK Advani's Full Statement
Veteran BJP Leader LK Advani Welcomes Babri Verdict- Watch
MM Joshi On Babri Demolition Verdict- Watch
MM Joshi Seen Eating Ladoos After Babri Demolition Verdict Sweets were distributed at the home of BJP's founding member MM Joshi, shortly after a special CBI court acquitted him and 31 others in the 28-year-old case.
Babri Demolition Verdict: What MM Joshi Said
Babri Demolition Verdict: LK Advani, acquitted, says Babri verdict "vindicates my personal and BJP's belief towards Ram Janmabhoomi movement". "I also feel blessed that this judgment 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 Ram Mandir at Ayodhya, the foundation-laying ceremony of which was held on August 5," Mr Advani, 92, said in a statement.
Read
here Unlawful elements were involved in the demolition of the Babri mosque, a special CBI court said this afternoon, adding that the leaders tried to stop them.
Babri Demolition Case Verdict: Not Enough Evidence Against Accused, Says Court
There's not enough evidence against the accused, says Special CBI court
All accused in Babri case acquitted, special CBI court announces verdict
Babri Masjid demolition was not a criminal conspiracy, says Special Judge
All six accused, who are not present in the court, have joined via video conferencing as the Babri verdict demolition verdict is being read out.
The demolition of the 16th Century mosque - Babri Masjid - was a watershed moment for the country.
Babri case verdict being read out at the special CBI court in Lucknow
Special Judge SK Yadav to read out verdict shortly
Babri Demolition Case Verdict: Tight Security At Special CBI Court In Lucknow
The hearings on Babri Masjid demolition involved evidence from 351 CBI witnesses and about 600 exhibits. As the hearings ended on September 1, the judge had started writing the judgment from the very next day to meet the deadline set by the Supreme Court.
In April 2017, the Supreme Court had asked a special court to complete the trial within two years with daily hearings. Later, it was given several extensions and when the judge asked for more time, the court had extended the deadline to September 30.
Babri Demolition Case: Six Accused Not Present In Court
Six accused are not present in court
On Babri Demolition Case, Here Are Some Updates- Watch
Babri Demolition Verdict: Over 20 Accused Present In CourtAccused who are in court include Faizabad MP Lallu Singh, Unnao MP Sakshi Maharaj , Kaiserganj MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, Ram temple trust member Champat Rai and 22 others.
LK Advani, Uma Bharti, Kalyan Singh, MM Joshi, Satish Pradhan, Nritya Gopal Das are not present in court.
A special CBI court in Lucknow will deliver the verdict shortly.
Babri Masjid Case Timeline: The Long Road To JusticeNearly three decades after the Babri Masjid -- a 16th century mosque in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya -- was demolished in an event that changed the country's political and social landscape, a special CBI court in Lucknow will deliver judgement on 32 accused, including BJP veterans LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi." itemprop="description
Judge arrives at special court in Lucknow.