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Indian Court Acquits Top Hindu Nationalist Leaders for Role in 1992
Demolition of Mosque

Anjana Pasricha

   NEW DELHI - Nearly three decades after the demolition of a 16th century
   mosque by a Hindu mob in India, a court acquitted top Hindu nationalist
   leaders charged with criminal conspiracy in connection with its
   destruction.

   The 1992 demolition of the Babri masjid, which Hindu groups said was
   built on the birthplace of their god, Rama, had sparked some of the
   worst Hindu-Muslim rioting in the country, killing nearly 3,000 people.

   It also marked a defining moment in Indian politics -- signaling the
   rise of the Hindu right-wing and helping the Bharatiya Janata Party
   build its popularity on a wave of Hindu nationalism.