NEW DELHI, 7 December 2004 — While for the majority of Indians the 12th anniversary of the demolition of Babri Masjid passed off normally adding credibility to the opinion held about Ayodhya being a “dead issue,” political and secular activists did not fail to exploit the occasion to gain media attention. Thus, Lok Sabha (the lower house of Parliament) witnessed a clash between the Samajwadi Party and the BJP-Shiv Sena combine over the issue.
Samajwadi’s Ramji Lal Suman raised the issue during zero hour in extremely strong terms, provoking BJP and Shiv Sena members to react. Suman demanded condemnation of those who had demolished the mosque. Some of his remarks were expunged from the records by Speaker Somnath Chatterjee when BJP deputy leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra objected to them.
CPM leader Basudeb Acharya accused former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh of having earlier acknowledged that the conspiracy to demolish the mosque had been hatched at the house of BJP President Lal Krishna Advani. As Kalyan Singh had changed his statement after rejoining the BJP, this should be clarified in the House, Acharya demanded.
Samajwadi members termed Dec. 6 as a “black day” and staged a walk-out.
In another part of the city, actress Shabana Azmi and her husband, lyricist Javed Akhtar, observed the day as “Communal Harmony Day” and participated in a public meeting organized by the Kaifi Azmi Foundation.
In widespread sectarian riots that followed the demolition of the mosque on Dec. 6, 1992, over 3,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed. While the issue still remains politically hot, it has over the passed several years ceased to excite common Indians to indulge in rioting. Nevertheless, with activists reiterating their respective stands, each anniversary has authorities exercise utmost vigil to keep law and order under control.
In Uttar Pradesh, tight security has been maintained in Ayodhya and Faizabad since Sunday as hard-line Hindu groups such as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Shiv Sena planned a rally near the town to mark the anniversary of the mosque demolition. Assembly of more than five people has been banned in Ayodhya.
“We are keeping a strict round the clock vigil in and around Ayodhya,” the state’s principal home secretary, Alok Singh, said.
While the Hindu hard-liners marked the day as “victory day,” reiterating their resolve to build a Hindu temple at the site, Muslim activists described it as a day of mourning. Dozens of Muslims recited verses from the Qur’an and held prayers for reconstruction of the mosque as armed police stood on alert.
Tight vigil was also maintained in other communally sensitive cities and towns.
Riot police was posted in Hyderabad, the capital of the southern Andhra Pradesh state. In response to a one-day strike called in the state by Muslim organizations, shops downed their shutters and streets wore a deserted look with black flags hoisted atop most shops and houses in largely Muslims dominated areas.
Hundreds of Muslims were detained in Madras as they attempted to stage demonstrations defying the ban order.
