On Tuesday, the Allahabad High Court dismissed a criminal plea filed against the order of the Special CBI Court in Lucknow, which had acquitted 32 people accused of criminal conspiracy to demolish the disputed structure of Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992.
According to the reports, the bench led by Ramesh Sinha and Justice Saroj Yadav dismissed the petition after it reserved its judgment on October 31. The criminal plea challenged the Judgment of Special CBI Judge SK Yadav who had stated on September 30, 2020, that there was no conspiracy behind the demolition of the disputed structure.
The judge also then acquitted all 32 persons including prominent BJP leaders LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharati, Kalyan Singh, etc in the case. The criminal plea dismissed today was filed by two residents of Ayodhya named Haji Mahmood Ahmad and Syed Akhlaq Ahmad. The duo claimed that they had witnessed the demolition of the disputed structure and that they were the victims of the incident.
The plea was filed in the year 2021 as a criminal revision plea. However, in July 2022, the counsel submitted that the plea was erroneously filed as a revision plea and they ought to have preferred a criminal plea.
The petitioners in the plea stated that the duo had not only witnessed the demolition but were also the victims of the incident. Syed Akhlaq Ahmad stated that his house was set ablaze and all his household assets were also burnt. “The appellants have not only suffered the loss of their historical place of worship known as Babri Masjid but have also suffered a great financial loss on account of the destruction of their houses which were not only damaged and looted by the offender and their collaborators but their houses were also put on fire and most of the belonging of their houses had also been destroyed on account of the arson and loot of their houses,” the criminal plea read.
The duo also alleged that the CBI investigating agency had adorned the role of defending the accused persons in the case. “The victims were left to accomplish the job of prosecution despite being victims having no means and help from anyone neither the State nor the Police nor the CBI,” the alleged victims had said.
In the 2000-page judgment, the court on September 30, 2020, had said that the demolition of the disputed structure was not a conspiracy and was not planned. Special Judge Yadav noted that LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi had tried to stop the mob from demolishing the structure. The court also stated that there was no criminal conspiracy behind the demolition of the disputed structure.
