As Ayodhya’s Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple complex edges toward full operational status— with its first-floor Ram Darbar consecrated in June and peripheral installations completed by mid-year—the site’s 500-year saga of faith, conflict, and jurisprudence remains a pivotal chapter in India’s socio-religious narrative. The temple, now drawing over 150,000 daily visitors, symbolizes for many a reclaimed heritage, yet it continues to evoke questions on historical interpretation and communal equity in a nation grappling with its pluralistic identity.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, overseeing the project, marked the fifth anniversary of the August 5, 2020, bhoomi pujan in recent months, highlighting milestones like the April installation of a 42-foot dharma dhwaj dand atop the main shikhar, elevating the structure to 203 feet. A gold-plated kalash now crowns the garbha griha, and idols of various deities and saints were positioned in April and May, including bilingual inscriptions detailing the site’s 500-year history at the eastern entrance. Trust chairman Nripendra Mishra confirmed in April that the entire complex, spanning 70 acres with accessibility features like ramps and lifts, would be ready by June 5, incorporating eco-friendly elements such as sewage and water treatment plants while preserving 70% green space. However, critics point to environmental strains on the Saryu River and local displacements from rapid urbanization, underscoring the site’s dual role as a spiritual beacon and developmental flashpoint.
Rooted in Hindu tradition, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi is believed to be the birthplace of Lord Rama, the seventh avatar of Vishnu, as described in the Ramayana on the banks of the Sarayu in ancient Ayodhya. Archaeological evidence suggests human occupation at the site dates back to the 17th century BCE, with layers indicating continuous habitation from the Northern Black Polished Ware era around 700 BCE, challenging earlier scholarly views limiting Ayodhya’s history to the 7th century BCE. Buddhist and Jain texts refer to the area as Saketa, a bustling center under Mauryan and Gupta rule, with stupas and monasteries unearthed nearby, reflecting its multifaceted antiquity.
The site’s contested phase began in 1528 CE, when Mughal general Mir Baqi erected the Babri Masjid under Emperor Babur’s reign, allegedly over a pre-existing Hindu temple—a claim supported by some accounts of destruction to assert Islamic dominance, though debated for lack of direct evidence from Babur’s memoirs, where relevant pages are missing. Muslim records affirm the mosque’s use until 1949, while Hindu narratives cite 76 battles between 1528 and 1949 to reclaim the spot, including sacrifices during festivals like Ram Navami. In the 18th century, structures like Sita ki Rasoi and Ram Chabutara were built nearby under Akbar’s purported oversight to appease Hindus, allowing limited worship.
Colonial-era tensions surfaced in 1853 with riots, prompting British authorities to fence the site in 1859, segregating inner Muslim and outer Hindu worship areas. An 1885 lawsuit by Mahant Raghubar Das to build a temple was dismissed by Faizabad courts citing risks of unrest. Post-independence, the dispute intensified on December 22, 1949, when Ram Lalla idols appeared inside the mosque, leading to its sealing as a prayer site for Muslims and ongoing puja for Hindus under court orders.
The 1980s saw the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) spearhead the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, culminating in a 1986 district court order unlocking the site for Hindu prayers, decried by Muslim groups as biased. The December 6, 1992, demolition by kar sevaks—amid rallies by BJP, RSS, and VHP leaders—triggered riots killing over 2,000, predominantly Muslims, and prompted central government acquisition of the land in 1993. A 2020 trial acquitted key figures, a decision faulted by rights advocates for evidential shortcomings.
Legal proceedings spanned decades: A 2003 ASI excavation revealed 12th-century temple remnants beneath, including pillars with Hindu motifs, though interpretations vary—some historians like R.S. Sharma argue birthplace claims arose post-18th century and mismatch traditional Ayodhya-mahatmya locations. The 2010 Allahabad High Court trisected the 2.77-acre plot among Hindu, Muslim, and Nirmohi Akhara claimants, stayed on appeal. The Supreme Court’s unanimous November 9, 2019, verdict awarded the site to Hindus based on “equity” and ASI findings of a non-Islamic structure, while allotting 5 acres elsewhere for a mosque—accepted by the Sunni Waqf Board but critiqued as majoritarian by others.
Formed in February 2020, the trust—comprising 15 members including Mahant Nritya Gopal Das as chairman—initiated construction in March, paused briefly by Covid-19. The January 22, 2024, pran pratishtha, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, faced opposition boycotts labeling it electoral. Recent critiques include claims of Islamic motifs in the design, dismissed by trust officials as unfounded. Funded by over 127 million devotees, the temple’s completion affirms a legal triumph for Hindus, yet the alternate mosque at Dhannipur lags, symbolizing unresolved asymmetries.
In Ayodhya’s evolving landscape, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi stands as a mirror to India’s aspirations and fractures— a site where devotion meets deliberation, urging ongoing dialogue on shared histories.