The 2300-pages of verdict pointed towards insufficient evidence and possible tampering of video and audio proof and anti- social elements for the razing of the structure.

The public looked at the verdict in utter shock and moreover with irony as the events that led to December 6 1992, unfolded right in front of their eyes. They knew without doubt who did it, why they did it and what did it cost as a nation. Among them who could undoubtedly say that the demolition was meticulously planned is Justice Manmohan Singh Liberhan who headed the Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry for 17 years.

The Liberhan Commission, set up in 1992 to probe the Babri Masjid Demolition, had in its report submitted in 2009, pointed to the involvement of senior RSS and BJP leaders, including L K Advani, Murali Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti and the involvement of the then Uttar Pradesh government. “They either actively or passively supported the demolition,” it said.

“I found it was a civil conspiracy, I still believe in it. From all the evidence produced before me, it was clear that the Babri Masjid demolition was meticulously planned,” Justice Libheran said to The Indian Express.

Justice Liberan also said that BJP leader Uma Bharti categorically took the responsibility of the demolition.

The Liberhan Commission said the mobilisation of “kar sevaks” was neither “spontaneous or voluntary” but “orchestrated and planned”. The report named over 60 people – including senior BJP leaders Advani, Joshi, Bharti and A B Vajpayee, RSS and VHP leaders, bureaucrats – as “culpable” for “leading the country to the brink of communal discord.

“It was the leadership of the BJP, a national political party, which came forward to mobilising the people on the Ayodhya temple issue, along with Mathura and Kashi. It challenged constitutional secularism by calling it pseudo-secularism,” the report said.

The Commission added that on December 6 1992 – the day Babri Masjid was demolished, Advani and Joshi were present at the spot, and they made a ‘feeble request’ to the kar sevaks to stop the demolition and come down from the dome.

The Commission also criticised the then Congress’s Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao’s led government at the center.

Justice Liberhan said that given the evidence and the witnesses that were presented before him, anybody could have concluded that the demolition was a premeditated action.

The 82-year-old former Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh and Madras High Courts said the demolition could have been prevented with administrative planning and action. He had made this point in his report, saying that no preventive steps were taken to avert the demolition, or prevent the spread of communal hatred.

However, Justice Liberhan refused to comment on the CBI court’s decision, he said that “I believe everyone does his job honestly. The court has the right to differ, there can be no dispute about its power or working.”

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“Anti-social elements brought down the structure. The accused leaders tried to stop these people,” said the special judge, whose term had been extended for this verdict. The judge also said the audio and video evidence produced by the CBI did not establish conspiracy charges.

BJP leaders LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti were all acquitted of conspiracy charges in a landmark verdict that has evoked strong reactions across the country.

A trending hashtag “No one demolished Babri” is doing the rounds in social media. The hashtag is a reminiscent of a Hindi film “No one killed Jessica”.

Several politicians, actors tweeted about the verdict that came after 28 years.

AIMIM cheif Asaduddin Owaisi said the CBI special court’s verdict in the Babri Masjid demolition case marks a sad and black day in the history of Indian judiciary. Meanwhile Muslim Personal Law Board is likely to challenge the verdict in High Court.

Expressing the outrage Mr.Owaisi called it obnoxious. “This judgment satisfies the collective consciousness of hindutva and its followers and ideology.” He wondered how the court could state that there was no conspiracy in the matter. “Was it some sort of magic that on December 6 the masjid was demolished? Who called for the assembling of the people over there? Who made sure that they entered over there?” he said.

Meanwhile Muslim Personal Law Board is likely to challenge the verdict in High Court.

Congress leader Ahmed Patel called the verdict “shocking” and tweeted:

The Babri verdict is shocking, it goes contrary to principles of natural justice & even the SC’s observation

— Ahmed Patel Memorial (@ahmedpatel) September 30, 2020

Calling it a “complete travesty of justice”, Left leader Sitaram Yechury recalled how a Constitution bench headed by the then Chief Justice had called the demolition “an egregious violation of law”.

“A complete travesty of Justice. All charged with criminal conspiracy to demolish Babri Masjid acquitted. It self imploded? The Constitution Bench headed by then CJI had said that demolition was an “egregious” violation of law. Now this verdict! Shame,” Mr Yechury tweeted.

Activist lawyer Prashant Bhushan responded tweeting , “There was no mosque there . Justice in New India!”

There was no mosque there. Justice in new India! https://t.co/JdqfgWqzLm

— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) September 30, 2020

Actor Swara Bhasker tweeted in Hindi saying, “The Babri Masjid fell on its own.”

Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani shared a photo of two magazines, then and last year, about the Babri Masjid and tweeted: “1992 and 2019… And in 2020: today, actually no one demolished #BabriMasjid. Like Kapil Mishra is in reality a great messenger of peace, Babri demolition and Rath Yatra was in reality just a fake news. All media stories before 2014 was fake news, only post-BJP media is truth (sic).”

1992 and 2019…
And in 2020: today, actually no one demolished #BabriMasjid.
Like Kapil Mishra is in reality a great messenger of peace, Babri demolition and Rath Yatra was in reality just a fake news. All media stories before 2014 was fake news, only post-BJP media is truth. pic.twitter.com/HbMnbjYnBm

— Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) September 30, 2020

Actor Richa Chaddha tweeted in Hindi: “There is a court above this place, where there is light and not darkness.”

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CBI judge SK Yadav, who had directed all 32 accused to be present during the proceedings today, has arrived at the court. While BJP veterans have skipped the proceedings, Vinay Katiyar, Dharamdas, Vedanti, Lallu Singh, Champat Rai, and Pawan Pandey are among the accused who will be in the court today. While Advani, Joshi, and co-accused Nritya Gopal Das are above 80 years of age Bharti and another accused, Satish Pardhan, are in hospital.

Special CBI court judge Surendra Kumar Yadav had already issued directives to all the accused, including former Deputy PM LK Advani, BJP stalwarts Murli Manohar Joshi, form UP CM and ex-Governor of Rajasthan Kalyan Singh, former BJP lawmaker Vinay Katiyar and Uma Bharti along with 32 others.

The court tried those who were allegedly involved in the criminal conspiracy leading to the demolition of Babri mosque by frenzied kar sevaks in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992.

The court also completed all proceedings in the case by recording statements of all 32 accused. Lawyer KK Mishra, who is representing 25 out of the 32 accused in the case, including Advani, Joshi, Kalyan Singh, Uma Bharti, had also confirmed the date set by the court for delivering the verdict.

The Supreme Court had given the CBI court a one-month extension, instructing it to wind up the case by September 30. The earlier deadline for judgment had expired on August 31.

The charges of conspiracy are in addition to the existing charges against the accused of promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, for which they are also facing trial. The accused are also facing charges of having made assertions “prejudicial to national integration and injuring or defiling a place of worship”. The CBI had filed a chargesheet against 49 people in the case, of whom 17 died during trial. The court recorded statements of 351 prosecution witnesses.

On April 19, 2017, the Supreme Court had ordered the special judge to conduct day-to-day trial, concluding it in two years.

The SC had termed the Allahabad High Court’s February 12, 2001 verdict dropping conspiracy charges against Advani and others as “erroneous”.

Before the 2017 verdict of the apex court, there were two sets of cases relating to the demolition, going on in Lucknow and Rae Bareli.

The first case referred to kar sevaks who were proceeded against in a Lucknow court, while the second set of cases relating to eight VIPs was being heard in a Rae Bareli court.

In April 2017, the Supreme Court transferred the Rae Bareli case to the Special CBI court in Lucknow.

While Advani and Joshi attended court proceeding and recorded statements through video conference, the rest of the accused appeared in Lucknow to record their statements.

Almost all the accused pleaded not guilty and termed it as a conspiracy hatched by their political rivals to frame them in a conspiracy case.

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