When I heard that the Ayodhya battle was still raging on, I thought, you've got to be kidding me. True, India's most controversial communal battle point disturbed a lot of people back in 1992, just a year before the 1993 bomb-blasts and riots and curfew decorated even the most civilised and modern cities in India like Delhi and Mumbai. But that was 18 years ago. Surely, some solution would have come out of it. Or may be not. After all these years, I found the newspapers talking about a day of closure because the Allahabad High Court - not even the Supreme Court - was due to give a verdict as to whether there will be a temple or a mosque constructed at the Babri Masjid demolished site. My Mum says make a school for the kids and make all the politicians who have polticised the issue stand in a line and shoot them. Of course, that is the favourite political response of any conscientious Indian.
If you think 18 years is a long time, think again. You'll be surprised that the issue doesn't date back to 1992, or 1990 or 1949. It dates back to the 10th Century.
I thought communalism was a parting gift by the British to India in the 1940s. I was not entirely correct. In the 16th century, under the British Raj, a Muslim Noble, Mir Baqi, constructed the Babri Masjid (mosque) on the land that was claimed to be the birthplace of Ram (the Indian equivalent of an ideal man, of course he was the avatar of Lord Vishnu- but women will tend to disagree and here's how). Even during the British Rule, the dispute over the ownership of the land: whether it belongs to the Muslims or Hindus, raged on. This must have inspired the Bristish's "Divide-and-Rule" policy.
Interestingly, in 1949, somehow Hindu idols "appear" inside the mosque, giving a fresh claim of ownership to the Hindus, and a new form of communalism in the new Republic. The chasm between Hindus and Muslims only widened following the bloodbath that the partition entailed. Muslims alleged that these idols were "placed" within the premises. The government claimed the ownership of the land; however, they allow the puja to be performed in 1950, when Hindu worshippers insisted for offering prayers to the newly found idols in the mosque. I bet they must have argued that it was a miracle.
It was in 1961 that the first case was filed by the Sunni Wakf Board claiming ownership of the land, contending that the land was a mosque and surrounding area was a graveyard. In 1984, L K Advani, an upcoming political force of the BJP, India's premier Opposition Party, spearheaded the "regaining" temple movement. A District Judge in Allahabad in 1986 opened the premises to the Hindus. The decision was criticised by the Muslims and the matter got escalated to the Allahabad High Court. Notwithstanding the impending decision, in 1989, the then Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, let the disputed mosque/ temple be open for a ground opening ceremony. L K Advani, who had become the President of the BJP, riding high on political fervour, undertook a controversial road trip to Ayodhya in September 1990. Series of riots broke out. He was arrested a month later.
On 6th December, 1992, the Masjid is demolished and the government led by Prime Ministed P V Narsimha Rao somehow let a "makeshift" temple "appear" at the site. This point in the Indian political history is marked by an all-time high communal tension.
Finally, in 2003, the Allahabad High Court appointed the Archealogical Survey of India (ASI) to study the excavations and submit a report as to if the temple really existed at the premises. The ASI report confirmed that a tenth century temple existed at the site where a mosque was built by Mir Baqi in 1528. Shocking. A week later the All India Muslim Personal Law Board challenged the report in the High Court.
In July 2010, the High Court gave a chance to the parties to settle their disputes, but no one came forward to talk. The Supreme Court, too, last week, intervened and deffered the judgment, asking the parties to have an out of court settlement. Without a response, however, the apex court asked the Allahabad High Court to pronounce the verdict on 30th Septemeber, 2010.
Whatever the High Court pronounces today, the decision will still be challenged before the Supreme Court. And that day, there'll be another holiday. A new generation of India, wondering what the noise and police security is all about; and after discovering the reason, they are guaranteed to be bowled over by the reason. And amidst the shock and the pessimistic streak that every Indian gets in legacy, there will be a slight tinge of shame. A country that makes use of the word secularism and democracy in the highest regards, is still grappling and politicising an issue such as this.
The world is watching, and our souls are aware too.
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