I wanted to post this as a status message on facebook but the small word limit and the fear of being unable to be clear ensured I am now posting a blog entry.
First of all the disclaimer. This is totally my personal opinion. I do not mean to offend. Also I find it funny that on the internet on an issue concerning only Indian Muslims there are so many Muslims from other countries shouting at forums and indulging in a who can abuse more match with others.
So the Ayodhya verdict is out. The verdict is surprising and that is good. If any community had won we would have had victory processions by the extreme wing of one and protest marches by the same wing of the other community. Both would be equally provocative. There judgment had and still has a great potential of engulfing India in violence.
As of now all is peaceful. Most probably all the troublemakers and hired goons are still scratching their heads wondering if they have won or lost. Thats the beauty of the judgement. Its a win some ,loose a little formula.
The judgment runs into thousands of pages with all 3 judges giving seperate opinions.
The court ruled that Hindus and Muslims have shared joint custody of the land for the last 200 years at least and so it shall remain. There is no clear looser. Please read the judgment available online at this link before forming opinions. The judiciary has not favored one community or being pro-temple as being said by some parties. Indeed I have seen the BJP and the RSS blowing trumpets of victory but that is maliciously misleading on their part.
By a majority judgement the land is to be divided into three parts. I thought a 50-50 division would have been more equal but the judgement is still acceptable.
On nearly every important issue the judges were divided and hence we have a majority opinion as the assenting opinion. The court did not as a majority agree that the Area was the the birthplace of Lord Ram. What the court said was that its the place where for the last 200 years many Hindus have believed that Lord Ram was born and the court will accept it.
The verdict is acceptable but it is likely to go to the Supreme Court. No one has won completely and a judgment of this magnitude has to be contentious. Maybe the SC could expedite it.
Now that the Sunni Board has 1/3rd of the land , it should ask whether Muslims really need that mosque. The verdict is a setback to right wing Hindu groups claiming the entire land. The verdict says Muslim Wakf board has equal rights to the land as the other parties. Indeed if we look at the reasoning of the majority opinion in the judgment, the fact is the rights for the Hindu community come from the special case that this mosque was a common worship place since the British. The Hindus had the use of the outer area. This of course is a precedent that may not be applicable elsewhere but may lead to unrest at other places of conflict as who can guarantee there will not be another Babri Masjid incident elsewhere(the political gains for the BJP were enormous ). This is disquieting. Indeed I hope the Supreme Court while reaffirming this decision should lay out very clearly that never again can a similar thing happen.
After this judgement however ,now that the legal rights of the Muslim have been reaffirmed, the Sunni Muslim Wakf board should take a step back and think.
The mosque at Ayodhya is not special, its just a mosque. This is not Mecca ,Medina or even the Ajmer dargah.There will be no Muslims going on a pilgrimage to Ayodhya to pray at the mosque. To me it seems sacrilegious that a mosque will be built there. Just for that area so many Muslims and Hindus have died. A mosque with a foundation of human skulls and the moans of people mercilessly murdered during riots cannnot be a place of where I can offer namaz.
Instead let there be a memorial there dedicated to innocent victims of violence which aims to further understanding and peaceful existence in India. Let there be photogrpahs that may remind people of the terrible cost of religious strife. And let it be dedicated to the nation.
The Babri Masjid demolition represents the very worst of humanity. But that Masjid is gone. Broken down stone by stone and the pre and the post riots ensured hundreds died. It did not happen suddenly but was the result of a steady raising of tensions. Why should people forget the actual cost of strife and even more importantly the terrible cost of hate? Indeed each citizen of India should realize that only hate has the power to tear this nation apart.
Indian Muslims also should have other priorities as a community correct. We are the most economically and educationally backward of all communities. We need a vibrant leadership. Indeed our leaders have let us down the most. Let us fight for education , justice(the criminal case over the demolition somebody?),equality and that Sachar committee report recommendations be implemented.
So Sunni Wakf board people if you ever read this, take the initiative and be magnanimous. Dedicate the memorial to the nation and to fighting hate and discrimination.
8 comments:
Very mature and responsible post, the Muslims should now help build a temple there. This will show real commitment for the eternal peace among Hindus and Muslims.
Now I don't want to start a fight again . But if Muslims can show their commitment and sacrifice by not building a mosque then why can't just it be a memorial or a place like a sarva dharma sthal. I believe not only one community has faced the violence and losses.
Making a temple will any day in future invoke a thought in some ignorant hindus that they won this 60 year old disagreement and will cause a situation of violence again. No doubt political parties will also take the advantage of triggering the spark in some muslims.
Better make it something which can be neither claimed as a place of hindus nor muslims but everyone's. A sarva dharma sthal being a good idea. A memorial for the ones who lost their lives will be even better.
A very well thought out post Ashraf. I think the judgment in many ways was really thought out too. Though it is still going to be appealed and re-appealed. It is a complex situation even more when it spans era's as the sensibilities of people have changed, so the judgment will appeal to a few and not to a few.
A few Hindu groups would still want to challenge the 1/3 land lost and a few Muslim groups would want equitable distribution. As you pointed out, for both communities there are many more important focus areas and the new resurgent India needs to focus on the right things not on things of the past. We need to be aware of our history and not repeat the wrongs. But the Advani’s of the world still seem stuck with the idea of a Hindu temple there and so will a lot many others who are probably still hurt by the actions of Muslim plunderers of the long gone era. We cannot dictate how they feel and so every sect needed reconciliation.
The judgment hopefully should be upheld without reading much into the lines of the judges. The new owner of the allocated land should be free and given full freedom to use the land as per their wishes. Both parties should help each other, to either build a temple on one part and a mosque on the other or however, owners decide to use it.
i must say it was a great thought.
maybe they can come up with a hospital?? or a school??
something for the betterment of the humanity??
All those saying that we can build a Hospital there, a school or any other structure are clearly not mature enough to understand the depth of the conflict. You need to understand that Ayodhaya Movement for good or bad was the largest movement in independent India, mass mobilization of people fueled by the support of few political and religious parties. You cannot ignore such mass sentiments even thought they may have triggered by religious elements.
The Babri Masjid demolition was really unfortunate and sad event, but when history will be written it will be seen as an act of balance. One cannot separate such events from Time and Space, the rise of Hindu fundamentalism was in response to the needs of time.
Also talking about the number of people who died in the this conflict or the aftermath let us not get overboard, in the post Babri Masjid riots almost 2000 people were killed. In the last 5 years 20,706 people have been killed on the Mumbai Local Train only in accidents. So the aftermath of Babri demolition though by all means very sad and unfortunate by no means represents the very worst of humanity.
About some of the priorities for Indian Muslims, I think the author is right,they have many other things to worry about, e.g. the Uniform Civil Code and the plight of poor Muslim women who even in a secular state of India cannot divorce their husbands because they are ruled by the Muslim Personal Law Board.
@Anonymous- Stuff like that happens at the lower level especially the city or town level. But there is nothing like a pan India muslim identity. Some people will oppose, some will be open to reconciliation.
The commitment for peace has always been there. Indeed if that commitment is missing the future is full of darkness.
@dharam - We all have a right to our opinions.
@SD- Yes the appeals will happen and people will change. A commentator on TV said let another 20 years pass before SC gives its order. In that time India would have moved further ahead and the whole problem would be a non issue.
Thats just an alternative view. Because while passions have cooled, India still shut down for the verdict.
As for those who live off hate and the fear of the other, there is no stopping them. Its a selective view of history. That of course is another blogpost. Will let u know when I pen it.
@Shreya- Ur comment is welcome. I only say in the land Muslims have let there be a museum dedicated to fighting hate. We as a nation sometimes lack the perspective on change and how strife affects the nation. We dont see the cost of the Punjab militancy, the anti-Sikh riots, the Babri Masjid demoloition. A large number of Indians admire Hitler as a leader not realizing they are admiring a fiend who led to the murder of six million people. So few of us know the horrors of holocaust, or the Rawandan genocide
@Anonymous 7:39 am: Every one has the right to their opinions. I have no comments about the temple but in place of the mosque, I want a museum which chronicles hate and spreads the message of coexistence.
The only thing you and I will agree upon us that the Ayodhya was the biggest mass mobilization movement in India.
When history is written they will see Ayodhya movement as the single largest cynical manipulation of religious sentiments of the masses for ulterior gains by the right wing hindu parties.
It brought the BJP to prominence and indeed Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee becoming PM was a conclusion of the same movement.
The rise of Hindu fundamentalism correlates with the greatest communal polarisation ever seen in this nation. And its continuing.
Of course the Congress and the other parties such as the SP are equally hypocritical for their own gains
The right wing parties feed off hate and the very worst of human emotions such as distrust and fears.
As a Nazi leader once said,"Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger."
Indeed the anti muslim outlook stems from this same ideology. Every problem in this nation seems to stem from muslims for the right wing stalwarts.
In my viewpoint Naxalism and right wing fundamentalism are the biggest dangers to India today. Because no other movement threatens to rip the soul out of India , the way hate can.
Now coming to your ludicrous argument that I hype the consequences of Babri Masjid riots. I would say you want to play it down. By your argument then nothing should matter. Afterall give me an event that killed 20000 people? Mumbai terror attack -nope , Parliament attack- nope, the anti Sikh riots of 1984-nope, Kashmiri Pandits expulsion-- nope again. Damm, I just cant imagine.
One innocent death is 1 death too many. The babri masjid demolition represents the worst of humanity as 2000 innocents were murdered, thousands were injured and many more were rendered homeless in the ensuing riots. Nearly every city the preceding rath yatra went was engulfed in rioting. The ghettoization in India accelerated as people searched for safe areas. Religion suddenly became important. Political parties realized the power of riots to get votes and so many riots in the last 2 decades have their roots in the Babri Masjid demoloition conflict.
Of course people have realized the terrible costs. Ayodhya issue is no longer that seductive. A new generation exists and people realize politics is never for public hope. There is a new ray of hope.
Moving to priorities for Indian Muslim, a lot of progress has been made and further is on. We probaly need better community leaders.
Secondly marriage in Islam is just a civil contract. If the marriage contract stipulates so, the Muslim women can file for Khula. This marriage contract is recommended nowadays. Talaq is the divorce when the man initiates it and Khula a lady initiates.
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