Although the Allahabad High Court verdict was received with a calm response, thousands of security personnel remained on the streets and in a state of high alert in all sensitive states, including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Friday prayers by Muslims also passed off peacefully. Home Minister P Chidambaram said the people had given a "respectful and dignified" response to the Ayodhya verdict.
Authorities said the security drill in sensitive areas across the country will continue for a few more days to thwart any law and order problem. The ban on bulk SMSes and MMSes has been extended to the midnight of October 3.
Thousands of potential trouble makers and anti-social elements were rounded up as a preventive measure in several parts of the country.
There was no report of any celebration or protests from any part of the country.
In Uttar Pradesh, a three-tier security vigil ( land, air and river) continued to be maintained in and around 18 districts identified as "hyper-sensitive" --Lucknow, Faizabad, Gonda, Balrampur, Bahraich, Gorakhpur, Mau, Azamgarh, Varanasi, Allahabad, Kanpur, Agra, Aligarh, Bareilly, Moradabad, Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Meerut.
The district police have been told to deploy ASP-rank officers along with paramilitary forces in sensitives areas that were worst-hit by the violence after the Babri Masjid demolition.
Calm prevailed in the twin cities of Faizabad and Ayodhya -- the epicentre of the Ramjanambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute -- and tension gave way to relief as devotees returned to the makeshift temple at the disputed site.
In Faizabad's alleyways, people were in a jubilant mood; with most saying there was no reason for discord after the court judgement.
No vehicle is being allowed entry into the temple town without extensive checking as patrolling has picked up, police said.
"Situation is totally normal but there will be no let-up in the security," Senior Superintendent of Police Faizabad R K S Rathore said.
In Delhi, police maintained a tight vigil, especially in the Walled city, to ensure that no untoward incident took place.
All police stations in the city were on high alert and the security arrangements made for the Commonwealth Games came in handy.
Amid a thick security cover with deployment of over 2.5 lakh security personnel, the situation in Mumbai and elsewhere in Maharashtra was peaceful.
A minor incident was reported from Aurangabad where police acted swiftly to maintain peace.
Mumbai, which had witnessed large-scale riots post- Babri Masjid demolition in 1992, also remained calm.
"No untoward incident was reported in the state. It remained absolutely calm. The security arrangements would continue for a couple of days," said K P Raghuvanshi, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order).
Mumbai Deputy Police Commissioner (Operations) Rajkumar Vhatkar said prohibitory orders in the country's financial capital will continue till October 3. Nearly 7,000 troublemakers were arrested in Mumbai as a preventive measure, he said.
In West Bengal, where security was enhanced, no untoward incident reported from anywhere in the state.
In Jharkhand, a minor incident had taken place but the situation was quickly brought under control.
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