Spl.Photos: Ayodhya from 1528 to 2010

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1991: Riding high on the success of Advani's rathyatra, the BJP became India's primary opposition party in Parliament and came to power in Uttar Pradesh.

1991: The movement for building a temple gathered further momentum with Karsevaks or Hindu volunteers pouring into Ayodhya. Bricks were sent from across India.

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1992: On December 6, the Babri mosque was demolished by Karsevaks. Communal riots across India followed.

1992: On December 16, ten days after the demolition, the Congress government at the Centre, headed by PV Narasimha Rao, set up a commission of inquiry under Justice Liberhan.

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1993: Three months after being constituted, the Liberhan Commission began investigations into who and what led to the demolition of the Barbri mosque.

2001: Tensions rose on the anniversary of the demolition of the mosque as the VHP reaffirmed its resolve to build a temple at the site.

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2002: Early that year, as Uttar Pradesh headed for Assembly elections, the BJP did not commit itself to the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya in its election manifesto.

The VHP, however, remains adamant and set March 15 of that year as the deadline for construction to begin. Hundreds of volunteers start converging on the site.

2002: On February 27, at least 58 people were ****ed in Godhra, Gujarat, in an attack on a train believed to be carrying Hindu volunteers from Ayodhya. Riots followed in the state and over 1000 people were reported to have died in these.

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2002: In April that year, a 3-judge Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court began hearings on determining who owned the site.

2003: The court ordered a survey to find out whether a temple to Lord Ram existed on the site. In August, the survey presented evidence of a temple under the mosque. But Muslim groups disputed the findings.

2003: In September, a court ruled that seven Hindu leaders, including some prominent BJP leaders, should stand trial for inciting the destruction of the Babri Mosque. But no charges were brought against Lal Krishna Advani, by now the Deputy Prime Minister.