VHP threatens war against Christianity
Sharat Pradhan in Faizabad-Ayodhya
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad now threatens to wage a war against Christianity.
Speaking to Rediff On The NeT on the fifth anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition in Ayodhya, VHP working president Ashok Singhal said, ''It is high time we took on Christians, who were out to demolish Hinduism by resorting to largescale conversions.''
VHP secretary-general Acharya Giriraj Kishore went a step further. He said Christians were ''more cruel than Muslims''.
Vehemently critical of the ''large-scale conversion of Hindus
to Christianity, particularly in the North-Eastern states'',
Singhal said, ''Only a strong Hindu government at the Centre
could arrest this trend.''
Confident that ''the forthcoming election would see the installation of a Hindu government in New Delhi'', he said, ''You will then see how we
ensure that all these converts either quietly come back to the
Hindu fold or else leave this nation.'' He also expressed
deep concern over ''the ever-growing Christian missionary
schools and institutions''.
Both leaders were in Ayodhya to flag off the VHP's much-publicised 300-km-long circular march around the neighbouring districts of the town.
The objective is to generate awareness about the need for constructing a ''magnificent Ram temple at the disputed site'', where a makeshift temple was erected on the debris of the mosque after the demolition. Thousands of Hindu devotees throng the temple every day.
The march that took off yesterday amidst blowing of conch shells
and cries of ''Jai Shree Ram'' will culminate in Ayodhya on December 14, when a special function will held at the local 'Karsewakpuram' (rest house for Hindu karsevaks closely associated with the temple movement) to honour some 10,0000 karsevaks.
Referring to the Hindu agenda, Singhal said, ''The VHP is updating it. Let a Hindu government be installed at the Centre, and see how we will go about rebuilding India into a Hindu rashtra.''
In this regard, a VHP working committee meeting has been scheduled later this month, he added.
Referring to the Ram temple in Ayodhya, he said, ''That the temple will be built here is a foregone conclusion. It is only a matter of time. Public opinion, favouring the temple construction, has been growing.''
Asked about Bharatiya Janata Party chief Lal Kishinchand Advani's statement that he would work for an amicable settlement on the Varanasi and Mathura shrines if Muslims give up their claim on Ayodhya, Singhal said, ''Amicable settlement means handing
over the shrines to Hindus. There is no way out for the Muslims. They have to bow out of Varanasi and Mathura. Of course, once the disputed areas, encroached upon by them, are entrusted to us, we may offer our gesture of allowing then some access.''
Earlier, Kishore observed, ''Only in the case of Mathura, we will allow Muslims to offer namaz at the disputed Idgah twice a year, as they have been doing before December 6, 1992.''
Both the leaders ruled out any kind of compromise on Ayodhya and Varanasi, ''where portions of the ancient Hindu temple were visible and still jutting out of the rear walls of the Gyanvapi mosque that was built on the temple's debris by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.''
While the VHP gears up for ''install a BJP government at the Centre'' campaign, Ayodhya's Muslims have still not overcome their fear -- it has been stalking them since the demolition.
Huddled together in small groups in and around their localities,
they make no bones about the ''constant threat'' that they face ''on account of a BJP government in Uttar Pradesh.''
Sixty-year-old Shabbir Ali is still haunted by memories of December 6, 1992. ''I cannot forget how my shop was set ablaze right in the presence of policemen and how I had to run for my life along with my family. I took refuge in a friend's place,'' he said.
Farmer Mujib Ali said, ''How can we forget that the same government was sitting in Lucknow when the mosque was pulled down? When they did not fulfil a commitment given to a court of law, how can we trust them?''
Seventy-year-old Mohammed Hashim, a key contestant in the dispute
relating to the ownership of the disputed land, said, ''The courts will restore the piece to us. After all, we have all the necessary documents to prove our case, unlike the VHP whose claims were solely dependent
on its belief.''
Asked to comment on Advani's offer, Hasim shot back, ''Advani has no right to decide the Babri mosque's fate. The court will do that.''
He said, ''For that matter, we should be asking Advani
to go back to Pakistan, from where he had come. It is he who does
not have his roots in India.''
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