Page 45 - 30NOV2019EA

SOCIETY

Professor of History at the
Centre for Advanced Study
in History at AMU, told me
during the course of an
interview: “There wasn’t a
Hindu or Muslim reaction
to the destruction of the
Babri masjid…as an Indian,
I felt insulted and it was a
blow to the image of my
country. The destruction of
the 475-year-old mosque
brought shame and dishon-
our to the country. It is not a
question of Hindu or Muslim
but the very destruction was
an insult to the country and
its citizen, an assault on the
Indian secular conscious-
ness. ”
♦ ♦ ♦
Today, Muslims are sitting
sad and silent because of
apprehensions and build
ups. Their worries are com-
pounding on two accounts
— what will happen to other
tion, the three were amply rewarded mosques in the country, especially,
— LK Advani as deputy prime minister, those mosques in Mathura and Kanshi
Murli Manohar Joshi as Union HRD which the right-wing parties have
minister and Uma Bharti as chief been voicing a claim that once- upon a
minister of Uttar Pradesh and later as time those mosques were temples too.
Union Minister. The proposals by What’s going to be their fate in terms of
Advani’s rath yatra (chariot tour) the security? That dent on their identity
was solely responsible for bringing in Muslim organisations is furthering and in itself is a mat-
poisonous divisive forces and dividing ter of worry. The ground realities are
communities. Communal characters and prominent citizens turning darker and murkier, with the
together with their poison dripping of the community vary right-wing brigades and private senas
speeches came to the fore with no holding sway.
end to it till today. Mind you, these from outright rejection, ♦ ♦ ♦
political opportunists were not labelled to payment for the plot,
terrorists, though they terrorised the If only we could hum along these lines
entire minority community. Ironically, setting up a hospital, of Baba Bulleh Shah, from our bruised
this terror striking lot were made the college or vocational hearts…
new rulers of the land instead. What
a dangerous situation, you destroy a institute on the land “Masjid dhaa de, Mandir dhaa de, Dhaa
religious structure yet no punishment which the Supreme de jo kuch dhenda,
awarded? Par kissi da dil na dha vee, Rab dilla
The Babri masjid destruction bared Court has directed the wich rehnda hae” (Destroy a mosque,
some ugly truths. Sad, it demolished government to give destroy a temple, destroy everything in
the idea of India. As the well- known sight. But don’t break a human heart,
historian Professor Irfan Habib, for construction of a for that is where God resides)
former chairman of Indian Council
of Historical Research and former mosque in Ayodhya LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM

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