Babri Masjid

The Babri Masjid (ISO: Bābarī Masjida; meaning Mosque of Babur) was a mosque located in Ayodhya, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was claimed that the mosque was built upon the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the legendary birthplace of Rama, a principal deity of Hinduism.^[2] The Ayodhya dispute has been a disputed focal point between the Hindu and Muslim communities since the 19th century.^[3] According to the mosque's inscriptions, it was built in 935 AH (1528/1529CE) by Mir Baqi, a commander of the Mughal emperor Babur. Before the 1940s, the masjid was officially known as "Masjid-i-Janmasthan" ("the mosque of the birthplace").^[4][5] The mosque was attacked and demolished by a Hindu nationalist mob in 1992, which ignited communal violence across the Indian subcontinent.

The mosque was located on a hill known as Ramkot ("Rama's fort").^[6] According to Hindu nationalists, Baqi destroyed a pre-existing temple of Rama at the site. The existence of this temple is a matter of controversy.^[7][8] The Archaeological Survey of India conducted an excavation of the disputed site on the orders of the Allahabad High Court. The excavation period was short due to court time constraints, lasting only 15 days. The report of the excavation concluded that there were ruins of "a massive structure" beneath the ruins of the mosque which was "indicative of remains which are distinctive features found associated with the temples of north India", but found no evidence that the structure was specifically demolished for the construction of the Babri Masjid. The report received both praise and criticism, with some other archaeologists contesting the results of the report.^[9][10]

Starting in the 19th century, there were several conflicts and court disputes between Hindus and Muslims over the mosque. In 1949, idols of Rama and Sita were placed inside the mosque, after which the government locked the building to avoid further disputes.^[11] Court cases were filed by both Hindus and Muslims asking for access.^[12]

On 6 December 1992, a large group of Hindu activists belonging to the Vishva Hindu Parishad and allied organisations demolished the mosque, triggering riots all over the Indian subcontinent, resulting in the death of around 2,000–3,000 people.^{[13][14][15][16][17][18]}

In September 2010, the Allahabad High Court upheld the claim that the mosque was built on the spot believed to be Rama's birthplace and awarded the site of the central dome for the construction of a Rama temple. Muslims were also awarded one-third area of the site for the construction of a mosque.^[19][20] The decision was subsequently appealed by all parties to the Supreme Court, wherein a five judge bench heard a title suit from August to October 2019.^[20][21] On 9 November 2019, the Supreme Court quashed the lower court's judgement and ordered the entire site (1.1 hectares or 2+3⁄4 acres land) to be handed over to a trust to build the Hindu temple. It also ordered the government to give an alternative 2-hectare (5-acre) plot to the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board to replace the Babri Masjid that was demolished in 1992.^[22] The government allotted a site in the village of Dhannipur, in Ayodhya District, 18 kilometres (11 mi) from Ayodhya City and 30 kilometres (19 mi) by road from the site of the original Babri Masjid.^[23][24] The great breaking ceremony for the mosque was held on 26 January 2021.^[25][26] In September 2024 it was reported that construction of the mosque had not commenced due to lack of funds and community antipathy towards the proposed mosque.^[27]