Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
Since 1855, the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya has been the source of sporadic clashes between Hindus and Muslims. After a thorough scrutiny of the available historical literature on the Mosque, this article argues that to regard it as the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama is untenable and the notion was...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Blackwell Publishing
2007
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| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/1/Babri_Mosque_A_historic_bone_of_contention.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848780354638315520 |
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| author | Islam, Arshad |
| author_facet | Islam, Arshad |
| author_sort | Islam, Arshad |
| building | IIUM Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Since 1855, the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya has been the source of sporadic clashes between Hindus and Muslims. After a thorough scrutiny of the available historical literature on the Mosque, this article argues that to regard it as the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama is untenable and the notion was actually put into circulation by British colonial officials to serve British interests in the Indian subcontinent. Successive colonial administrations tried to strengthen their grip on South Asia by playing off one group against another in the name of caste, race, and, most importantly, religion. The ongoing Hindu-Muslim conflict in India is largely the outcome of British policies. With their agenda of 'divide and rule' that aimed at consolidating their hold over the subcontinent the British tried to create a huge chasm between Hindus and Muslims. They labelled Muslims as the oppressors and Hindus as the oppressed, working to gain the support of the Hindu masses by provoking their hatred of the Muslims; and they strongly backed their religious and other claims in a vast amount of biased literature. It was with this colonial agenda that they endorsed the Hindu claim to the site of the Babri Mosque. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T15:32:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | iium-30892 |
| institution | International Islamic University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T15:32:20Z |
| publishDate | 2007 |
| publisher | Blackwell Publishing |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | iium-308922013-08-04T04:48:37Z http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/ Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention Islam, Arshad DA Great Britain DS Asia Since 1855, the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya has been the source of sporadic clashes between Hindus and Muslims. After a thorough scrutiny of the available historical literature on the Mosque, this article argues that to regard it as the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama is untenable and the notion was actually put into circulation by British colonial officials to serve British interests in the Indian subcontinent. Successive colonial administrations tried to strengthen their grip on South Asia by playing off one group against another in the name of caste, race, and, most importantly, religion. The ongoing Hindu-Muslim conflict in India is largely the outcome of British policies. With their agenda of 'divide and rule' that aimed at consolidating their hold over the subcontinent the British tried to create a huge chasm between Hindus and Muslims. They labelled Muslims as the oppressors and Hindus as the oppressed, working to gain the support of the Hindu masses by provoking their hatred of the Muslims; and they strongly backed their religious and other claims in a vast amount of biased literature. It was with this colonial agenda that they endorsed the Hindu claim to the site of the Babri Mosque. Blackwell Publishing 2007-04 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/1/Babri_Mosque_A_historic_bone_of_contention.pdf Islam, Arshad (2007) Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention. Muslim World Journal of Human Rights, 97 (2). pp. 259-286. ISSN 1554-4419 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1478-1913.2007.00173.x/pdf |
| spellingShingle | DA Great Britain DS Asia Islam, Arshad Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention |
| title | Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
|
| title_full | Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
|
| title_fullStr | Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
|
| title_full_unstemmed | Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
|
| title_short | Babri Mosque: a historic bone of contention
|
| title_sort | babri mosque: a historic bone of contention |
| topic | DA Great Britain DS Asia |
| url | http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/30892/1/Babri_Mosque_A_historic_bone_of_contention.pdf |