Babri Demolition Report Presented in Parliament

A day after excerpts of the long-delayed findings on the destruction of the Babri mosque were leaked out, creating a furore in the lower house of parliament, the government has finally tabled the report in the parliament. Scuffles broke out this time in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of parliament with angry MPs of the opposition Bhartiya Janata Party or BJP shouting slogans.

The 16th century mosque in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya was destroyed by Hindu hardliners on 6th December 1992. The Hindus believe the mosque was built on the ruins of a temple marking the birthplace of their God, Ram. What followed then were widespread religious riots, one of the worst since the country's independence in 1947, claiming at least 2,000 lives.

Senior leaders implicated

The Liberhan commission report holds at least 68 people responsible for playing a part in the destruction of the mosque. According to local media, some of them are senior leaders of the BJP such as former premier Atal Behari Vajpayee and the current leader of the opposition Lal Krishna Advani.

The report says politicians such as Uma Bharti, Govindacharya and the then Chief Minister of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Kalyan Singh, bear prime responsibility. They are no longer part of the BJP but have always supported the construction of Ram Temple at the controversial site.

Speaking to a news channel, Justice Minister Veerappa Moily said the findings are a wake-up call for leaders of Hindu nationalist organizations including the BJP.

“Now if they (the BJP) want to remain (in mainstream politics), they need to change their course. This is a clear warning to them - you need to change.”

BJP upset with the leakage of the report

On the other hand BJP president Rajnath Singh has accused the government of intentionally leaking the report to media first to malign his party’s image especially ahead of key election in the state of Jharkhand:

"The Liberhan report was submitted to the central government on June 30 and parliament was in session until the first week of August. The government should have tabled the report in parliament in that session. But it did not do so. They have done it now. It is an attempt to indict our party.”

What has surprised many is the fact that the report has cleared the then prime minister of the ruling Congress party, the late P.V. Narasimha Rao of blame. Rao had faced criticism at the time for not doing enough to prevent the mosque’s destruction.

The report doesn't recommend any punitive action against any of those involved. It has suggested a law though that would punish those who misuse religion to acquire political power.

The inquiry, headed by Manmohan Singh Liberhan, was set up 10 days after the destruction of the mosque. But it took 17 years to compile the findings and is one of India’s most expensive commissions, costing the government nearly 70 million rupees or over a million euros.

Author: Disha Uppal
Editor:Grahame Lucas