New Ayodhya Mosque Construction Starting In May, Not Named Babri Masjid

In Ayodhya, as Hindu devotees have commenced the inauguration of the grand Ram Mandir, Muslims are planning to initiate the construction of a new mosque in the same city later this year.

Haji Arfat Shaikh, the head of the development committee of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF), overseeing the mosque project, told Reuters that construction is scheduled to begin in May, following the holy month of Ramadan. 

The mosque, "Masjid Muhammed bin Abdullah," named after Prophet Mohammad, will take three to four years to complete. This name differs from "Babri Masjid," as the disputed structure was called, after the emperor Babur, who established the Mughal empire. 

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The new temple replaces a 16th-century mosque demolished by Hindu mobs in 1992, triggering nationwide riots that claimed nearly 2,000 lives. Many Hindus contend that Ayodhya is the birthplace of Lord Ram and that the Babri mosque was constructed by Muslim invaders on the remains of a Ram temple, precisely where the Hindu god was believed to be born.

In 2019, the Supreme Court of India declared the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992 as unlawful. However, the court acknowledged the presence of a non-Islamic structure beneath the Babri Mosque.

Based on the evidence presented, the court decided to allocate the disputed land for the construction of a temple dedicated to Lord Ram, while Muslims would receive an alternative plot to build a mosque.

While the temple's construction began promptly, Muslim groups have faced challenges in raising funds and initiating work at a distant site approximately 25 km (15 miles) away.