Babri masjid demolition case: All acquitted, key points of verdict

NEW DELHI: A special court on Wednesday acquitted all accused in the

Babri mosque demolition case

. The CBI court said there was no conclusive proof against the 32 accused.


Here are key points of the verdict:

* Judge SK Yadav said that demolition of Babri Masjid was spontaneous and not pre-planned.

* The structure was demolished by anti-social elements.The involvement of the accused, direct or indirect, was not found, the judge said.

* Ashok Singhal and other Sangh parivar leaders wanted to save the structure as Ram Lalla statues were inside, the court said.

* The court said a local intelligence report had cautioned in advance that unexpected sequence of events can take place on December 6 but it was left unattended.

* The court said that there is no conclusive proof against accused.

*“The video cassettes were not sealed and even the videos were not clear and as such the same cannot be relied upon,” observed the judge.*The special CBI judge in his order said prosecution’s charge that a meeting was held at the house of Vinay Katiyar on the eve of the demolition where the conspiracy to raze the structure was hatched, was left unsubstantiated. A video of the meeting was presented as the evidence. The court said that the video evidence didn't prove that any conspiracy was hatched.

*"About the photographs, the court said that the negatives were available but the CBI could not produce the negatives. Also the video recordings were fabricated and tampered with. CBI did not follow the provisions of 65 Evidence Act, that is why all accused were acquitted on the basis of lack of evidence," the counsel for Sakshi Maharaj, Prashant Singh Atal said.

Quick Edit: Babri - Failure to prosecute mob violence

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