Mosque charges revived

NEW DELHI: India’s Supreme Court yesterday restored criminal conspiracy charges against 13 top leaders of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bhartiya Janta Party in the demolition of a 16th century mosque, officials said.

The court allowed restoration of the charges against 13 people. CBI, India’s premier investigating agency, has been investigating the case since the demolition of the mosque in Ayodhya town of India’s northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in 1992. The accused were charged with making inflammatory speeches that motivated thousands of party workers to pull down the mosque. Xinhua