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Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow
Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders forced their entry into the makeshift Ram temple at Ayodhya on Wednesday in gross violation of the Supreme Court's directives.
Confusion prevailed in and around the disputed makeshift shrine that was erected on the debris of the 16th century Babri Masjid, which was demolished on December 6, 1992.
About 200 acres of land in and around the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid complex is in the custody of the central government, which has appointed the Faizabad divisional commissioner as its custodian.
The prime minister's office made frantic inquiries until it received an assurance from the Uttar Pradesh chief minister's office that matters were "under control".
VHP leader Ashok Singhal, vice-president S C Dikshit and international general secretary Praveen Togadia staged a dharna [sit-in] at the temple for nearly two hours, before they were physically removed by the police.
They were insisting on performing a puja on the first day of the nine-day Hindu religious festival of Navratra commencing on Wednesday.
The crisis was defused only after the intervention of top administrative and police officials, including the divisional commissioner and the deputy inspector general of police, Faizabad.
Chief Minister Rajnath Singh, who was scheduled to address a rally in Ayodhya's twin city Faizabad, deliberately postponed his departure from Lucknow. "The chief minister left only after word was received from the district authorities that the defiant VHP leaders had been brought out of the temple premises," a senior official said.
Principal Home Secretary Naresh Dayal said, "No sooner were we informed about the gate-crash than we ordered action following which the VHP leaders were formally taken into custody and removed from the place."
Dayal said that according to the Supreme Court's order, none other than the temple priest can enter the sanctum sanctorum of the makeshift temple.
He also promised punitive action against the policemen on duty. "It was a sheer case of dereliction of duty and action is bound to be taken against officials of the UP police as well as the Central Reserve Police Force who were jointly entrusted with the security of the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid complex," he said.
As many as about 800 policemen are permanently stationed within the precincts of the acquired area to maintain round-the-clock vigil on the controversial site.
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