The moment foundation stone was laid for the magnificent Ram Mandir (temple) construction in Ayodhya Asaduddin Owaisi and All India Muslim Personal Law Board started their shameless circus and shown their intolerance towards the religion of the 85% majority of the country. They got burned with envy, Immediately after it, and began reiterating that secularism in India is diminishing under the Hinduism dominance. Owaisi has got an opportunity to disturb the communal harmony, so he seized this fragile moment, to extend his propaganda of provoking minds of secular hindus and inflaming the section of fanatics Muslims. The degree of shamelessness with which Asaduddin Owaisi and All India Muslim Personal Law Board commented rubbish, for their cheap political gains,on Land Ram worship ceremony on the occasion of Ram Mandir laying of its foundation stone by PM Narendra Modi, will divide the society certainly upto some extent. Owaisi and Muslim Personal Law Board has shown their irresponsible attitude as always. They do not want India to develop and earn the title of world leader.
What will happen in future, cannot be accurately predicted. But, if someone will raise questions on the Supreme Court’s judgement on Babri Masque then it not only criminal contempt of the Supreme Court but also a betrayal of the promise which all Muslims leaders had made to completely and wholeheartedly accept the Supreme Court’s judgement. The construction of Ram Mandir(Temple) is definite and if even after this long struggle of Hindus, Owaisi did not get an idea about strong determination of Hindus then he is definitely playing with fire and he should anticipate its grave consequences. Who has granted the rights to Muslim Personal Law Board to be a sole contractor of Muslims of the entire country. Personal Law Board has tried to incite communal hatred by staying that with the passage of time,they will change the decison of Ram Mandir in a similar way, they changed the Hagiya Sophiya Masjid. This kind of threatening tone is very dangerous and open contempt of court. But none of the secularist liberals even uttered a word on their shameless irresponsible utterances.
Even at present time also, there are hundreds of mosques in different parts of India, which were constructed after demolishing old temples, which do not even require proof to verify this fact. If Ram Mandir has to be met with similar fate that of Sophiya then, why only Ram Mandir? Let us have a glimpse of Original Kashi Vishwanath Temple, on which a Gyanvapi mosque is standing today. Go and visit Qutub Minar of Delhi. There you will encounter with many walls where symbols of Hinduism carved on is still present.
Undoubtedly,the language and the way of unwarranted reactions of Asaduddin Owaisi and All India Muslim Personal Law Board is an open disregard and disrespect of the Supreme Court’s judgement of 9th November 2019. They should be booked under contempt and disregard of Supreme Court. They are restless mainly on PM’s Ayodhya visit. Have they ever objected when former Presidents and Prime Ministers organised Iftar party during Ramzan month? They all believe Nehruji as their ideal. No issues with that.No one is aginst Nehru, there could be certainly ideological differences and different styles of working of different PMs. But do they know that, Nehru himself often visited the Kumbha Mela to have an auspicious dip in the Gangage?
The manner in which Owaisi is behaving for a few years is highly objectionable and anti- National. This kind of irresponsible behaviour is never expected from an MP. But it seems that he has decided not to change his attitude. Few days ago, Muslims were stopped by police from offering Namaz in parks of Noida of Uttar Pradesh as they have not taken the required permission. In 2009 judgement of Supreme Court, it stated that a permission must be taken from police administration for religious-social organisation at public places. After UP police action, a planned disturbance was created. But they called it an attack on religious belief of minorities to make hue and cry.
When this conflict became big, Owaisi started adding fuel to the fire. Owaisi started saying that UP police offer flowers to the kaanwariyas(devotees who mainly walk on foot to the temple holding kaanwar during Shrawan month) and stop the Namazis. Do he consider the obeying and executing Supreme Court’s judgement wrong? The standard of Owaisi’s poltics has gone all time low. One can see, zumma namaz ( Friday prayers of Muslims) on roads, railway stations, parks, markets etc. As the character of the Constitution is secular, it is mere foolishness to question police actions who are working completely constitutionally and the protest against practising Namaz is irrelevant. In India, every religion, caste, sect and creeds are completely independent to practise and follow their customs. It is guaranteed by the Constitution. But it cannot be drawn from it, that one has the right to construct temple under a peepal tree, to construct a Mazar on a roundabout overnight and practise Namaz on anywhere on the public places and distrib the normal life of majority community. If we do not take steps to prevent it then we will lose our moral rights to think and ponder over insufficient playing spaces for our children of all community including Muslims also . Should permission be granted to organise Namaz or Ramleela at public places like parks?
Actually, some mischievous persons always try to make hue and cry on the issue of intolerance. They get the support of braggart like Naseeruddin Shah also. No one can make them understand that tolerance is present in the very soul of Indian civilisation. Had it not been the case, then Indian minorities would have faced the similar fate what the Sikhs and Hindus of Pakistan and Afghanistan are facing. But Hindu Majority themselves are a protector and guarantee of well being of minorities of India. Under the shade of Hindu culture, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhs and even Islam that came from Arab world also prospered and flourished in India.
India is secular as the Hindu religion itself is originally secular. Persons calling India intolerant should study the Indian history. They will have the knowledge of the real India.They claim anything about India having superficial knowledge. India can be given the title of most tolerant nation of the world. Its rulers had never attacked, looted, brutally murdered and seized territories of the any other part of the world,like the one done by Islamic, British and other invaders that came to India. Indian rulers are remembered for their pride and brave character, who even sacrificed their lives to protect their country. Hindus never indulge themselves in converting people with other other religious beliefs to Hinduism forcefully ,unlike Islamic rulers who are known for their oppressions, mass killings, forceful religious conversions and snatching the happiness of billions. But Indian people have always welcomed religious practitioners and preachers.
Jews landed on Malabar coast of India in 542 BC. And they are leading a peaceful life in India untill now. Christians started travelling to India in 52 AD. They also did maiden visit to Kerala. Then Persians came. After escaping the extremist Islamic killings in Iran they firstly landed on Navsari coast of Gujarat in 720 AD. Islam also came to India with Kerala route. The one of the oldest mausque of the world is still standing there with pride.
But, followers of Islam in later years did not come to India to take refuge. They attacked to loot and rule over India. They were attackers and looters.
The person having a knowledge of Indian history know that last foreign attackers to India were the British. They won 1757 battle of Plassey with the help of cunning Robert Clive. But these englishmen were more mature and wise than previous attackers. They understood that expansion of British rule is not possible by proselytising. They can import raw materials from India to lay foundation of Industrial Revolution in Britain. That’s why Britain which is a Protestant country, probably has never tried in its 190 year rule to proselytise any person with different religious belief. So, the Protestant Christians are lesser in number in comparison to Catholic Christians in India. They were converted by mainly Irish, Portuguese and Spanish Christian Missionaries. They aimed their mission to Goa, Pudducherry and other parts of the country.
Now everyone should understand, Shri Ram is present in each and every particle of Indian land. It is impossible to even imagine India without Shri Ram. Majority of indians believe and venerate Shri Ram as their religious ideal. Ram Manohar Lohia reiterate that India has three historic and religious names-Ram, Krishna and Shiva. Their works might be known to almost every Indian or at least one in every two indians. Their thoughts and actions, or whatever words they have said might be known in detail in one in every ten indians. One cannot even imagine the large number of times people of India recite the name of Shri Ram. This number can reach even billions. India will continue to recite the name of Shri Ram which is only way to reach salvation.
By RK Sinha
(Writer is senior editor, columnist and Former MP)