30th anniversary of Babri demolition: Ayodhya, Mathura on ‘high alert’

Due to the Babri Masjid demolition’s 30th anniversary on December 6 and the city of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh being on high alert, Both at Ayodhya and Mathura, there have been extensive security precautions established. Drones are used for surveillance in a very secure environment. Everywhere there are police present. Nobody may plan any type of event in the neighbourhood on this day without the consent of the government. Checks are also being done on arriving vehicles and individuals.

According to reports, Senior Superintendent of Police for Mathura Gaurav Grover has directed his officers to monitor every development involving the city’s security. In contrast, people in the holy city of Ayodhya seem to have moved on three decades after the Babri mosque was destroyed and are seemingly treating Tuesday, which marks the anniversary, practically like any other day.

Police have characterised the security preparations for December 6 in Ayodhya, the date on which ‘kar sevaks’ destroyed the mosque built in the sixteenth century, as ‘routine’. The 300-meter red zone surrounding both sites is used to monitor visitors. All organisations have been given strict directives. The Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha has requested permission to perform the Laddu Gopal Jalabhishek and recite the Hanuman Chalisa in the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Idgah complex in Mathura today.

The Mathura government has therefore enforced section 144 in the district. This prohibits gatherings of more than five individuals for meetings, picketing, or any other type of protest. The Muslim community has no plans to observe a ‘Black Day,’ and unlike in the past, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad will not observe ‘Shaurya Diwas’ (Bravery Day) on Tuesday. The VHP declared that it did not wish to take any action that ‘undermines trust and community peace’.

After the Supreme Court’s ruling, which granted the Hindu side the right to build the Ram temple at the Ram Janmabhoomi complex, the Ayodhya dispute was settled. The Sunni Central Waqf Board in the Ayodhya district has been given five acres of land specifically for the mosque’s construction. For the benefit of the Ram Mandir Trust, construction is taking place in the Ram Janmabhoomi complex.