The Rohillas displayed their iconoclastic fervour during the campaing, melting all the silver and gold idols they could seize. In the interests of th… - Meenakshi Jain

In several cases, temple structures were burnt or demolished stone by stone. All materials that could be used went into the construction of churches. Metal images were melted and used to make church ornaments. In the Salcete territory, all temples in 58 of the 76 villages were destroyed. The Jesuits estimated the big temples to number 280, while the small temples were “innumerable.”The wood of the Lakshmi temple in Sancoale village was utilized in making the church of St. Lourenco. The images of Daro (Dhaddo), Pormando (Paramameda), Narana (Narayana) Baguaonte (Bhagavati), Hesporo (Ishwara, Shiva) were burnt, beaten to pulp, and thrown in the river, A guru (guru of the temple is the gentile who cleans the temple and sweeps it, who decorates it and adores its idols; he lives next to the temple and eats the offerings) cried so much as it is possible to cry for the death of the good king. p 218

The Bindu Madhava temple, commended by Tulasi Das in several poems, was amongn the tallest and finest buildings atop the Panchaganga Ghat. Vandalized several times between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, it was rebuilt the last time by Raja Man Singh. The French traveler, Tavernier, described it as the most imposing structure along the Banaras waterfront. Aurangzeb had a huge mosque constructed at the site, which still dominates the skyline at the Ghat. A temple bearing that name was constructed in the shadow of the mosque. It is a non-descript structure, but continues the traditions associated with the site.

“So why has the matter dragged on for so long? Can a handful of historians be held accountable for stalling resolution of what is essentially a settled matter? Their voluble assertions on Babri Masjid have all been found to be erroneous, yet there has been no public retraction. Are they liable for vitiating social harmony over the issue? If the nation has to move on, honest answers must be found to these questions.” (p.145)