Crossword Genius

Protest ignited India towards destruction (10)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

demolition

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'destruction' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'protest ignited india towards' is the wordplay.
'protest' becomes 'demo' (demonstration).
'ignited' becomes 'lit' (synonyms).
'india' becomes 'i' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'towards' becomes 'on' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'demo'+'lit'+'i'+'on'='DEMOLITION'

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(Other definitions for demolition that I've seen before include "destructive action" , "ruin" , "defeat" , "Licking" , "Knocking down" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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