Nearly 23 tumultuous years and many Sundays after Uttar Pradesh’s then-chief minister Mulayam Singh ordered police to fire on kar sevaks gathered at the Ram Janmabhoomi site in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992, the ancient temple city is on the edge again on the eve of the VHP-led Chaurasi Kosi Parikrama Yatra to the Ram Janmabhoomi site today.
A tenuous serenity prevails in the city of Ram; markets are open for business, the narrow streets are crawling with vehicles and schools and colleges mark good attendance. The only difference between then and now is that in 1990, the forces of Hindutva had amassed to tear down the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya; this time they want to build the Ram Temple. On Sunday, the VHP will take out the yatra lasting until September 13 to push for building the Ram temple. The Samajwadi Party government has denied permission for the yatra. Over 40,000 to 50,000 VHP activists are estimated to take part in it.