Ayodhya dispute: Key Issues

New Delhi: The verdict in the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute will decide whether the 2.7 acres of disputed land on which the Babri Masjid stood before it was demolished on December 6, 1992, belongs to the Sunni Central Waqf Board or to the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha.

The Ayodhya dispute at a glance:

• The verdict to be delivered in Lucknow today considers a dispute over 2.7 acres of land in Ayodhya.

• The dispute was first taken to court 60 years ago

There are four title suits that ask the court to decide on:

• ownership of the land
• whether there was a temple at the site before 1538
• did the idols of Lord Ram, Sita and Lakshman exist inside the mosque, or were the idols placed inside on 22 December, 1949?

There was communal tension when an idol of Lord Ram was found inside in December 1949, and the government confiscated the site. That is when the lawsuits began.

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    * The Ramjanmabhoomi Trust holds that this land is the birthplace of Lord Ram


    * The Waqf Board holds that the land was site of the 16th century Babri mosque

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    * In December 1992, thousands of kar sevaks, led by BJP and RSS leaders, demolished the Babri Masjid.