Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Ayodhya: Top court verdict expected tomorrow

CITIES and towns across India are on a state of alert ahead of a crucial Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya tomorrow (9).

More than 5,000 paramilitary force members and police have been deployed in the northern town of Ayodhya, where an ancient mosque was razed in 1992 by hardline Hindus who believe the site is the birthplace of Lord Ram.


The destruction of the mosque triggered religious riots in which about 2,000 people, most of them Muslims, were killed across the country and led to a series of court battles with various groups staking claim to the site.

The Supreme Court is expected to deliver its decision at 10.30 am on Saturday on who should control the site late next week as thousands of Hindu monks and devotees have been arriving in Ayodhya for the judgment.

“Thousands of (additional) security personnel from different agencies have been deployed in and around Ayodhya. Additional vehicles, CCTV cameras, body cameras and drones too have been brought in,” Ayodhya police senior superintendent Ashish Tiwari said.

At the same time, various government agencies are making their preparations to thwart any violence.

“Each and every security officer is committed to prevent minor skirmishes or large-scale riots after the court delivers its verdict,” said a senior home ministry official in New Delhi,

“State governments have identified several schools to set up temporary jails if the need arises,” said the official, who declined to be identified.

Hindu groups say a temple existed on the site before the mosque was built in 1528 by a Muslim ruler.

Prime minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party has long campaigned on a promise to support the construction of a Hindu temple on the site of the razed mosque.

Ayodhya is in densely populated Uttar Pradesh state, home to more than five per cent of India's 200 million Muslims.

Provincial police chief Om Prakash Singh said precautionary measures were in place and social media platforms were being monitored to track inflammatory posts ahead of the verdict.

"We will not tolerate Hindus or Muslims publicly displaying their reaction to the court verdict," Singh said.

Tiwari said: “The police is also making other efforts to ensure that things remain calm. We have enlisted around 16,000 digital volunteers from 1,600 villages in the region to help monitor and flag sensitive content on the social media.”

The monitors will report what they deem is inappropriate content to police, who could then try to track down the posters and demand that they delete their posts or messages.

Ayodhya - considered one of the holiest Hindu sites - is visited by religious pilgrims from all over India throughout the year.

Around one million pilgrims are expected to be there early next week for a bathing ritual in the Saryu river that flows in the region.

"We just have to stay alert and sensitive to the security of the visiting pilgrims," Ayodhya district magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said.

Muslim clerics in Gujarat and Maharashtra states called for peace meetings with Hindu leaders in communally sensitive areas ahead of Friday prayers.

Navaid Hamid, president of the All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat, the top forum for Islamic organisations, said thousands of Muslim religious leaders had vowed to maintain peace and harmony after the court verdict.

"The land can belong to Hindus or Muslims, but there will be no repeat of the 1992 communal violence," said Hamid.

(AFP, Reuters)

More For You

Former police officer arrested in Rotherham investigation

Investigators believe the earlier offences happened between 1995 and 2002 (Photo for representation: iStock)

Former police officer arrested in Rotherham investigation

A FORMER police officer has been arrested in connection with the ongoing investigation into child sexual abuse in Rotherham, authorities revealed on Tuesday (1).

The former constable, who is in his 50s, was taken into custody on Monday (31). He is suspected of raping a teenage girl in the South Yorkshire town in 2004, according to officials.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi Xi

Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping during their meeting in October 2024.

75 years of India-China relations: Modi, Xi call for stronger ties

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi and Chinese president Xi Jinping exchanged messages on Tuesday to mark the 75th anniversary of India-China diplomatic relations.

Modi stated that the development of bilateral ties contributes to global stability and a multipolar world, while Xi called for a "dragon-elephant tango" to strengthen cooperation between the two countries, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sri Lanka forms committee to address UK sanctions
Anura Kumara Dissanayake

Sri Lanka forms committee to address UK sanctions

THE Sri Lanka government on Wednesday (2) formed a committee to recommend measures regarding the UK's decision to impose sanctions on three former military commanders who led the campaign that crushed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009.

Health minister Nalinda Jayatissa told reporters that foreign minister Vijitha Herath, justice minister Harshana Nanayakkara and deputy minister of defence Aruna Jayasekara would comprise the committee that would consult experts for the purpose.

Keep ReadingShow less
Gujarat-blast-ANI

The blast caused the factory’s concrete roof to collapse, scattering debris and body parts across the area, officials confirmed. (Photo: ANI)

ANI

Death toll rises to 21 in Gujarat firework factory explosion

AN EXPLOSION at an illegal firecracker factory in Gujarat's Deesa town killed 21 people and injured several others on Tuesday, officials said.

The blast caused the factory’s concrete roof to collapse, scattering debris and body parts across the area, officials confirmed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Child benefit payments set to rise for UK families

Child benefit, normally paid every four weeks directly into bank accounts, has undergone significant changes in recent months (Photo: Getty Images)

Child benefit payments set to rise for UK families

MILLIONS of British families are set to receive a financial boost as child benefit payments increase from April 7, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

From next week, parents will receive £26.05 per week for the eldest or only child, amounting to £1,354.60 annually - up from the current rate of £25.60. For each additional child, payments will rise to £17.25 weekly, totalling £897 per year - an increase from the present £16.95 rate. This represents a 1.7 per cent increase across all payment categories.

Keep ReadingShow less