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Court favours excavation of disputed Ayodhya site

Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow

The special bench of the Allahabad high court hearing the proceedings in the Ayodhya dispute has favoured an extensive excavation in and around the disputed site in the temple town to determine whether an ancient temple ever existed there before the construction of the 16th century Babri Masjid.

Babri Masjid was pulled down on December 6, 1992 by Hindu fundamentalists.

The court's view came on Friday during the course of the day-to-day hearing in the case.

The three-judge bench comprising Justice Sudhir Narain, Justice S R Alam and Justice Bhanwar Singh said, "If there was any temple or religious construction on the disputed site, or if it ever existed, its foundation can be traced by excavation."

As per the court direction, the excavation could be carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India under the supervision of five leading archaeologists, of whom two would be Muslims.

Significantly, the court has also talked about temporary shifting of the existing makeshift temple to the neighbouring cemented platform, so that routine visits by devotees is not disrupted.

The special bench had preferred to lay down certain necessary tasks to be carried out during the course of the excavation work. These include videography of the entire excavation, which would have to be necessarily carried out between 0900 hours (IST) and 1700 hours (IST).

It has also prescribed both coloured and black and white photographs of artefacts discovered during the excavation, as well as their proper documentation and safe custody.

While giving two weeks' time to both sides to give their opinion in this regard, the special bench has asked the Archaeological Survey of India to use ground-penetrating radar systems or geo-radiology to make a preliminary survey of the area before undertaking the larger exercise of excavation.

The Ayodhya Issue: Complete Coverage

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