Dharma Yudh: Communal Violence, Riots and Public Space in Ayodhya and Agra City, 1990 and 1992

Abstract

On December 7, 1992, following the demolition of the Babari Masjid in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya the previous day by enthusiastic bands of kar sevaks, drawn from all parts of the country, the Republic of India erupted in communal riots, the initial round of which took almost a week to subside, leaving in its trail a toll of over one thousand dead and four thousand injured.1 Hindu tradition held that the three-domed mosque was built in the sixteenth century by Mir Baqi, a general of Babur, after razing to the ground a previous temple that stood on the birth place (janmasthan) of the Hindu god Rama, a central figure in Hindu mythology and folk culture. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in conjunction with other militant Hindu organizations like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS) had been spearheading an energetic campaign for the mosque to be relocated and a temple to be built in its place. The above incident was seen as one culmination point of its pro-Hindu activities.