Babri Masjid demolition case: Supreme Court directs UP govt to give protection to CBI judge

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]N a written letter to the Supreme Court, Special Central Bureau of Investigation Court judge Surendra Kumar Yadav, conducting the Babri Masjid demolition trial, has sought protection for himself.

A bench of Supreme Court Justices RF Nariman and Surya Kant said that the judge had placed his requests for protection and four other demands in a letter written on July 27. The Apex court told the state government to consider all of them within two weeks as the requests seemed reasonable.

The Supreme Court also told the state government to pass orders to extend the judge’s tenure within two weeks. The judge is due to retire on September 30. The court had told the state government last month to extend Yadav’s tenure till the completion of the trial but the Adityanath government has not yet issued an order.

On July 19, the Supreme Court told the special Central Bureau of Investigation court that the judgement in the Babri Masjid demolition case must be delivered within nine months. On April 19, 2017, the top court had ordered day-to-day trial in the case, and said it should be concluded within two years. Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi are parties to the case.

In 2017, the court had also restored criminal conspiracy charges against Advani and Joshi along with Vinay Katiyar, Sadhvi Ritambhara, Vishnu Hari Dalmia. It also restored charges against several other Hindutva leaders who had been acquitted in the case.

Three other high-profile accused – Giriraj Kishore, Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Ashok Singhal and Vishnu Hari Dalmia – died during trial and the proceedings against them were abated.

On December 6, 1992, the mosque in Ayodhya was demolished by Hindutva activists who had gathered at the site from across the country. The demolition had triggered communal riots across the country.