![Demolition by Ramachandra Guha; Illustration by Akshaya Zachariah for FiftyTwo.in](https://images.prismic.io/fiftytwo/00efe947-ec04-4dfb-a71b-0eb85aff9325_89-Homepage+Desktop-Demolition-fiftytwo_detail.png?auto=compress,format&rect=0,0,2720,1264&w=2720&h=1264)
Demolition
Three decades ago, the destruction of a mosque in Ayodhya changed the course of Indian history. A writer recounts what life was like before the dismantling.
Ramachandra Guha is a historian based in Bengaluru. His books include The Unquiet Woods and Rebels against the Raj.