Three Decades On: An Idea in Danger of Extinction

Three domes were brought down at Ayodhya on 6 December 1992, with a profound impact on the national psyche. As violence engulfed parts of the country, fears of a catastrophic collapse of the constitutional order did not seem unwarranted. Much had been lost to that vandalism but hopes of retrieval were not extinguished. In the aftermath of the event, it did not seem unrealistic to hope that the institutions would hold firm. ‘Justice for all’ is a cornerstone of the constitutional order and as the country grappled with trauma, most minds were focused on its restoration in all aspects. Where called for, justice had to be asserted in the punitive respect, but more important, perhaps, were the restorative and preventive dimensions