AMN/New Delhi
Hundreds of citizens and activists from several organizations came together at a joint rally in the national capital on the 26th anniversary of the demolition of Babri Masjid on December 6.
The protest demonstration and rally were jointly organized by Lok Raj Sangathan, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Communist Ghadar Party of India, CPI(ML) New Proletarian, Welfare Party of India, Socialist Party of India, Jan Sangarsh Manch Haryana, Sikh Forum, United Muslim Front, Citizens for Democracy, Unite Against Hate, Nirman Mazdoor Panchayat Sangam, Lok Paksh, Hind Mazdoor Sabha (Ghaziabad), Mazdoor Ekta Committee, Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (Delhi), Purogami Mahila Sangathan, Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Hind Naujawan Ekta Sabha, NCHRO, APCR, Student Islamic Organization and the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties, Delhi.
Speakers included S. Raghavan, President of Lok Raj Sangathan, Intizar Naeem of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Prakash Rao of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, Com. Sheomangal Siddhantkar of CPI(ML) New Proletarian,Mr. Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas of the Welfare Party of India, Ms Poonam of Purogami Mahila Sangathan, Santosh Kumar of the Mazdoor Ekta Committee,Mr. Charan Singh of the Socialist Party of India, Mr. KK Singh of the Lok Paksh, Mr. Inswar Bhai of the Nirman Mazdoor Panchayat Sangam, Mr. Abdul Rashid Agwan of the Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (Delhi), Maulana Mehndi Hasan Kasmi of the Unite Against Hate,and many others.
Speakers pointed out that the demolition of Babri Masjid was pre-meditated and planned in advance. The Congress Party which ruled at the center and the opposition BJP colluded in whipping up communal passions all over the country. BJP openly carried out an all-India campaign for its demolition. The demolition was aimed at humiliating all people of the Muslim faith. It was a dagger driven into the heart of our society, aimed at smashing the unity and solidarity of our people.
Over the past 26 years, there has been a great escalation of anarchy and violence. People of the Muslim faith have been continuously targeted for communal attacks. All Muslims are slandered as “terrorists” and “Pakistani agents”. Innocent youth are tortured and jailed for years on end under laws such as POTA and UAPA. Many have been murdered in fake encounters. In the name of “gau raksha”, people are being lynched.
An extremely dangerous situation confronts our people. Communalisation and criminalization of politics and unleashing of state terrorism have become the preferred method of rule. Parties like the BJP and Congress have shown that they are willing to go to any extent, including organizing of communal genocides, to come to power or retain power. Their activities are posing a great threat to the unity and solidarity of our people.
The Babri Masjid cannot be looked at as a mere property dispute. At the heart of the problem is the question — what kind of India shall we leave for the coming generations? The people of India have always upheld that the state has the duty to ensure prosperity and security to all. The tragedy is that the present day state has failed in its duty.
This state has worked to ensure that the corporate houses enrich themselves at the expense of the people. The electoral process ensures that only parties backed by the corporates are entrusted with running the government. Such parties cynically inflame passions on the basis of religion, caste, region, or language, to prevent the people from uniting and fighting for their rights.
The state machinery has been used, time and again, by the party in power, to unleash communal violence and state terror. People do not have any mechanism to punish their elected representatives or state officials even when they commit the most terrible crimes or fail in their duty to defend the lives of the citizens. People are thoroughly marginalized in the present system.
Speakers gave the call “Let us build our unity, firmly upholding the principle that ‘an attack on one is an attack on all’. We must resolutely oppose the attempts of the rulers and the corporate media to paint the victims of communal violence and state terror as ‘anti-nationals’ and ‘terrorists’”.
Participating organisations demanded conviction and punishment of those who organised the demolition of Babri Masjid and incited communal massacres 26 years ago. They appealed to people to unite in the struggle for justice and an end to communal violence and state terror. “Let us defeat the efforts of the rulers to break our unity! Let us fight for power in the hands the people!”