Ram Janmabhoomi: Complete Timeline & History

A factual chronology of the events that shaped the present-day Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir at Ayodhya, drawing on Supreme Court of India judgments, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) reports, the Liberhan Commission report, and Government of India press releases. Where a date is mythological or traditional rather than historical, this is noted.

Ancient and traditional period

• Treta Yuga (mythological): According to the Valmiki Ramayana, Lord Shri Ram is born at this site to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya. The site is called Ram Janmabhoomi: “the birthplace of Rama.”
• 1st century BCE (traditional): King Vikramaditya of Ujjain is said by tradition to have rediscovered the lost city of Ayodhya and rebuilt a temple at the Janmabhoomi.
• Late ancient and medieval period: Successive temples are repeatedly built and rebuilt at the site according to local accounts and Jain/Buddhist parallel traditions.

Mughal era

• 1528 CE: A mosque-style structure, later known as the Babri structure, is commissioned during the reign of the Mughal emperor Babur, by his general Mir Baqi. Hindu tradition holds that an existing temple at the Ram Janmabhoomi was demolished to build it; ASI excavations (see 2003) later supported the existence of a substantial pre-existing structure.

British Raj: first lawsuits

• 1853–1858: First recorded communal incidents at the disputed site under British administration of Awadh.
• 1885: Mahant Raghubar Das files the first formal lawsuit seeking permission to construct a canopy (chabutra) on the outer courtyard of the disputed site. The suit is dismissed.

Post-independence period

• 22–23 December 1949: Idols of Ram Lalla are reported to have appeared inside the central dome of the disputed structure. The site is locked by district authorities to prevent communal incidents; both Hindu and Muslim parties file civil suits over the next year.
• 1950: Gopal Singh Visharad files a suit seeking the right to worship at the site. Paramahansa Ramachandra Das files another. These are followed by suits from the Nirmohi Akhara (1959) and the Sunni Central Waqf Board (1961).
• 1 February 1986: The district court orders the gates of the disputed structure to be opened, permitting Hindu worship of the idols of Ram Lalla.
• 9 November 1989: Shilanyas (foundation-laying ceremony) is performed on land adjacent to the disputed site by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad.

The 1992 demolition and aftermath

• 6 December 1992: The Babri structure is demolished by a large crowd. The event is followed by communal violence in several Indian cities. The Government of India institutes the Liberhan Commission of inquiry the following month.
• 1993: The Acquisition of Certain Area at Ayodhya Act is passed by Parliament; the disputed and surrounding land (about 67 acres) is acquired by the Central Government.
• 2003: The Archaeological Survey of India, on the orders of the Allahabad High Court, conducts an excavation. Its report concludes that there is evidence of a substantial pre-existing structure beneath the demolished mosque.

Legal resolution

• 30 September 2010: A three-judge bench of the Allahabad High Court delivers a 2:1 majority verdict, dividing the 2.77-acre disputed land into three equal parts among the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara, and the Hindu plaintiffs (representing Ram Lalla Virajman). All parties appeal to the Supreme Court.
• 9 November 2019: A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court of India, in a unanimous verdict, awards the entire 2.77-acre disputed land to Ram Lalla Virajman for the construction of a Ram temple, and directs the Government of India to allot 5 acres of alternative land to the Sunni Central Waqf Board at a prominent location in Ayodhya.

Construction of the new temple

• 5 February 2020: The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is constituted by the Government of India to oversee construction and management.
• 5 August 2020: Bhoomi Pujan (foundation-stone ceremony) is performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, marking the official start of construction.
• September 2020 – December 2023: Construction proceeds in phases. The Sompura family of Ahmedabad serves as principal architects; the temple is built in the Nagara style with Bansi Paharpur sandstone, with no iron in the structural design.
• 22 January 2024: Prana Pratishtha is performed; the Ram Lalla Virajman idol, sculpted by Arun Yogiraj of Mysore, is consecrated in the garbhagriha. Public darshan begins immediately afterward.

Completion of the full complex

• 5 June 2025: Unified pooja of the Ram Darbar and the six rampart (parkota) shrines dedicated to Surya Dev, Bhagwati, Ganesh, Shiva, Hanuman, and Annapurna; opened to the public.
• 25 November 2025: Dhwajarohan: the ceremonial saffron flag is hoisted atop the main shikhara by the Prime Minister, marking the formal completion of the entire temple complex including the seven sage mandapas. Total project cost: approximately ₹1,900 crore.