NEW DELHI, 19 January 2005 — The Allahabad High Court yesterday asked former Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani to appear before it on Feb. 25 to answer charges of his involvement in the destruction of the Babri Masjid.
Advani’s party colleagues — Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharati — Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders Ashok Singhal, Vishnu Hari Dalmiya and Acharya Giriraj Kishore and Shiv Sena leader Moreswar Save have also been summoned by the court’s Lucknow bench.
In 2003, Advani was acquitted in the case by a special court.
The Allahabad High Court order came in response to a “revision petition” filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which has been probing the case for more than a decade.
The CBI submitted before the court that it has enough evidence about their role in the demolition of the mosque in Ayodhya town on Dec. 6, 1992 that sparked nationwide Hindu-Muslim riots which killed more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims.
Advani, along with the other accused, were present when the demolition took place.
