In 1992, extremist Hindus destroyed Babri Masjid, a sixteenth-century mosque, in the Indian city of Ayodhya.

Seeking to move beyond a prolonged and violent conflict, India’s minority Muslims plan to commence the construction of a new mosque later this year in the same city where Hindu devotees are preparing to consecrate a massive temple dedicated to one of their holiest deities.

Haji Arfat Shaikh, the head of the development committee of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF), which is spearheading the project, disclosed that the mosque’s construction is slated to commence in May, following the holy month of Ramadan. Reuters reports that the mosque is expected to take three to four years to complete.

In 1992, extremist Hindus destroyed the Babri Masjid, a sixteenth-century mosque in the Indian city of Ayodhya, contending that it was built over an ancient temple at the site where the Hindu deity Ram is believed to have been born. The demolition exacerbated tensions between the Hindu and Muslim communities, resulting in widespread riots that claimed 2,000 lives, predominantly Muslims.

In 2019, India’s highest court ruled that the mosque’s destruction was illegal but acknowledged evidence of a non-Islamic structure beneath it. The court mandated that Muslim community leaders receive an alternative plot in the city to construct a mosque, while Hindu organizations were granted the site to erect a temple.

Despite the initiation of construction on the $180 million temple within months, Muslim organizations have faced challenges in fundraising and commencing work at a barren location approximately 25 km (15 miles) away. In contrast, the first phase of the temple is scheduled to open on Monday.