| Submit your comments on this article |
| India-Pakistan |
| Indian Report on Site of Demolished Mosque Delivered in Secret |
| 2003-08-25 |
| More background on how intractable the fighting is - goes back 450 years Under tight security, an Indian court received an archaeological report Friday aiming to resolve a fight over a religious site claimed by Hindus and Muslims that has dragged on for decades. The documents from a 4Âœ-month government-sponsored dig at the demolished Babri Mosque — destroyed by a Hindu mob in 1992 — were expected to be released by judges on Monday, High Court official Narendra Prasad told The Associated Press. Archaeologists had searched the site at Ayodhya in search of remnants of an ancient temple that modern-day Hindu nationalists claim once stood there. The trial over whether Hindus or Muslims own the site started more than half a century ago and moves at a snail’s pace, with months passing between hearings. The dispute has become a key and volatile issue for the future of troubled relations between India’s majority Hindus and minority Muslims. Court employees said copies of the report were delivered under tight security and were being kept under guard. Hindu groups say a temple to their supreme god, Rama, at the site was destroyed 450 years ago by a Muslim Mogul emperor, Babar, who built the Babri Mosque. They have installed an idol there and demand that the government give them the land to build a temple on ground that they believe is Rama’s birthplace. Ayodhya, in northern Uttar Pradesh state, is one of Hinduism’s seven sacred cities. Muslim groups say there is no proof the site was Rama’s birthplace, and have insisted the land be returned to them so they can build a new mosque. The excavation started March 12 on the orders of a special court. The Archaeological Survey of India, a government agency, unearthed some 1,360 artifacts, including bangles, earthen stoves, pieces of bone and parts of pillars and figurines, a member of the excavation team said, speaking on condition of anonymity. |
| Posted by:Frank G |
| #8 Can you imagine? "The Holy City of Skunk Corners". An idea whose time has truly come! |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-8-25 8:01:20 PM |
| #7 I love it! The Holy City Of Las Vegas |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-25 7:54:47 PM |
| #6 I know what you mean SWHDNVFWP. I think we should start making fun of this trend by making sure to insert the phrase "the holy city of" before any mention of American towns ("the holy City of Cleveland", "the holy City of Austin", etc etc etc.) The mainstream media will of course continue to RIDICULOUSLY pretend that any thing stamped Muslim could actually be "holy", but the rest of us don't have to play along! |
| Posted by: Flaming Sword 2003-8-25 7:16:05 PM |
| #5 As a Christian I feel denied. We've only got one "sacred" city and then only certain parts Jeruselem are really sacred in my book and then I am prfectly willing to share it with the Jews and the Muslims. But the Hindus and Muslims. Every freaking time we turn around they've got another sacred city popping up. Next thing we know Little Rock will be one too! |
| Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire 2003-8-25 7:05:31 PM |
| #4 This gives me an interesting idea... offering Sikhs free homesteads in Kashmir. The only requirement is that they have to defend their own homes. |
| Posted by: Dishman 2003-8-25 5:43:15 PM |
| #3 I guess this means war, right? If the Muslims begin waging war over this, I think the most appropriate thing to do is to turn the evidence over to the Indian people, whip them into a religious frenzy, and send them into Pakistan with large, sharpe knives they can use to shave the young Muslim men. From throat to crotch, in one quick slash. There are 650 million people in India, about 42 million in Pakistan. Offer Bugtiland to the Sikhs for a homeland. That should help things out a bit... |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-8-25 4:18:29 PM |
| #2 I guess this means war, right? When doesn't it? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2003-8-25 3:34:24 PM |
| #1 Duck and cover time: ASI 'finds' temple, Muslim front says no While the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) today said that it had found features of a temple at the Babri Masjid site, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) alleged that these findings were "without any basis". ASI's findings have been "concocted" at the instance of the Vajpayee Government and particularly under "pressure" from Union ministers Jagmohan and Murli Manohar Joshi, the AIMPLB claimed. "This report is totally inconsistent with the interim reports submitted earlier", Board Secretary Mohammed Abdul Rahim Quraishi who is also President All India Majlis Tameer-e-Millat said in a statement. "The ASI team has very conveniently overlooked the depth at which grave and human bones were found because its was proof of Muslim habitation even earlier to the construction of Babri Masjid. Quraishi said a team of well known archeologists including Prof Suraj Bhan had visited the site and inspected the excavated pits and was of opinion that there was evidence of an earlier mosque beneath the structure of Babri Masjid. "I don't care how old your temple is, us muslims wuz here first!" Earlier today, the ASI reported to the High Court at Lucknow that its excavations found distinctive features of a 10th century temple beneath the Babri Masjid site. The 574-page ASI report consisting of written opinions and maps and drawings was opened before the full Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court this morning. The report said there was archaeological evidence of a massive structure just below the disputed structure and evidence of continuity in structural activities from the 10th century onwards up to the construction of the disputed structure (Babri Mosque). Among the excavation yields it mentioned were stone and decorated bricks as well as mutilated sculptures, carved architectural members, and 50 pillar bases in association with a huge structure. The archaeological evidence and other discoveries from the site were indicative of remains, which are distinctive features found associated with the temples of north India, the ASI report said. I guess this means war, right? |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-8-25 3:15:23 PM |