Violence has been rewarded, and we should all worry: Times of India
The Supreme Court judgment on the Babri Masjid title suit is a stalker’s dream. It documents more than 150 years of violence and intimidation and grants the title wholly to the harassing party. One can imagine the Supreme Court bench of judges retiring to their chambers after watching Darr, and then deciding that the girl should go to the psychopath.
The 1,045-page judgment again and again circles back to the fact that Hindus worshipped in the outer courtyard of the complex, and harassed Muslims going into the mosque in the inner courtyard. It also cites that Hindus used to frequent the mosque before the riots of 1856, which starts the evidentiary trail. Hindu worship in the outer courtyard was never disrupted or the subject of harassment by Muslims. Staggeringly, the court argues that this makes the claims of the Hindus to the whole site stronger than the claims of the Muslims.
It is worth quoting a passage in full from page 882 of the judgment: “Within the premises of the same complex there existed two religious faiths. Their coexistence was at times, especially before 1856, accepting and at others, antagonistic and a cause of bloodshed. Yet, the distinctive features of the site, embodying both Hindu and Islamic traditions led to the creation of a space with an identity of its own. The real significance attached to the composite structure is evidenced by the nature and the length of use by both of the parties.”
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