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The Milli Gazette Online

Lucknow: The attention of the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court consisting of Justice Rafat Alam, Justice Khem Karan and Justice Bhanwar Singh, which is hearing the case in connection with the 1992 demolition of Babri Masjid, has been diverted to some complicated issues arising in connection with the various activities of VHP and RSS which ultimately led to the demolition of Babri Masjid.

Babri demolition: a foreign conspiracy?

The court has directed the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to file an affidavit and explain whether there was any foreign conspiracy behind Ram Mandir movement aroused by the VHP from time to time. The ministry has also been asked to explain whether some foreigners escorted by the then chief minister Kalyan Singh’s private secretary Nirpendra Mishra had secretly visited Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura before 6 December 1992. The ministry has been further asked to clarify if after the receipt of this information, it had got this matter inquired by IB and RAW. The ministry has also been asked to clarify if it considered a judicial enquiry into the matter with a view to clamp restrictions on all movements pertaining to Ram Mandir. 

These directions were issued by the court to the Union home ministry after a petition was filed by the president of Muslim Forum for National Unity, Iqbal Qureshi. The Next hearing of this case will take place on 24 May.

This situation arose when the state government, in spite of court orders neither filed its affidavit in response to its orders nor the advocate general appeared before the court in this matter. The state government’s lawyer had told the court that talks and consultations between the chief minister and advocate general are going on about this writ and since the matter has not yet been finalised, there is delay in filing the affidavit.

It may also be stated in this connection that when the state government failed to file the affidavit, the court had summoned Union Government’s senior advocate, NK Seth, in the court and sought his stand on this writ. He requested more time in order to study the case in detail. On this, the hearing of the case was postponed for a week.

Linking his writ with Gujarat riots, Iqbal Qureshi said that during VHP’s Sankalp Sabha of 17 October 2003 it had broguht to Ayodhya adivasis from 8 states. «