From: alok@cbnewsi.cb.att.com (alok.vijayvargia)
Subject: Re: Hindu kutey
Organization: AT&T
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 18:27:34 GMT

In article <1g96caINN7pi@tamsun.tamu.edu>, gagrawal@cs.tamu.edu (Gopal Agrawal) writes:
> In article <1992Dec10.221413.14532@cbnewsi.cb.att.com> alok@cbnewsi.cb.att.com (alok.vijayvargia) writes:
> >
> >Their is a difference in demolishing an old unused mosque building and
> >burning of six women and children praying in a temple in pakistan.
> >
> >Don't get too emotional about a structure. One got to condemn the loss
> >of life more than the loss of a material structure like a building.
> 
> Tell me, did not the leaders who instigated the mosque destruction 
> know that this would spark of ugly riots. 

I know of no leader who instigated the destruction of mosque in the near-term
history. As far as I know neither Advani nor Joshi, Singhal, Kalyan Singh
etc made any statement that mosque should be destroyed during this 
kar-seva on Dec 6th. If the sentiments were mistook by a number of kar-sevaks
and they destroyed the mosque in this emotional frenzy, the leaders can not
be blamed for it. At best they can be held accountable morally. This they
did and resign or they were simply fired/banned.

> Are you saying that they
> were so naive as to not have realized this outcome. 

No they were not naive and that is why they did not make any public 
statement asking for destruction of the mosque. 

But was Mr. Rao so naive that he could not forsee the possibility of 
destruction of the mosque ? Why did he not take adequate security
measures to protect the historical place ? Why did he not take pro-active
action ? Why only reactive action is being taken by the government ?
Why didn't the government take such determined action (as they have done
in the aftermath) in resolving the crisis earlier ? Why were they taking a 
stop and go slow approach in resolving such a potentially explosive crisis ? 
Mr. Chavan, Mr. Rao, the bureacrats and even Indian courts ought to be blamed 
equally and in fact even more because they were in a position to resolve the 
crisis. They had the means and the power and the authority. They failed. So
the kar-sevaks took it in their hands. And they did what their little minds
and consciousness allowed them to do. 

> It was more like
> pushing a button that sets of the nukes.  

Not really. This is again a case of mistaken analogy. A nuke kills
millions in minutes while the Ayodhya type fiasco resulted in 1000 or so
deaths in a week or so.  In a country of 880 millions, 1000 is nothing.
Let's not forget that millions have died in the past due to Hindu-Muslim
conflict. Let's not hyper-ventilate about a recent 1000.
(Don't get me wrong - I am not approving any killings and my due regrets
to those whose relatives and friends were killed. I believe Indian
government should duly compensate such families and issue a due apology).

Indian government should share the blame equally. A resignation of Mr.
Rao and Mr. Chavan would be a form of apology which would make the 
Muslims feel more secure in India. Rebuilding the mosque would not
give them the sense of security they are seeking but a responsible,
efficient and pro-active government would do.

> How is that different from the burning of the women and children in a temple.
> Physically speaking, the mosque was an old unused structure. But every
> one understood the practical implications of tearing it down. 

Once again, BM was just a physical structure, unused for last 45 years.
It was a symbol of the Mogul era, that is it. It was more historical than
religious since it was not being used as a mosque.

It was a disputed structure at the time it was destroyed.
It is a crime to destroy historical structures and that is exactly how it
should have been dealt by the government. However the government has also
made it a religious issue just like BJP by promising to rebuild it. 

This in my opinion, is a fatal mistake on part of the government - an unwise 
political move. In long term it will not bring security to the innocent muslims
of India. On the other hand it will make them targets of Hindu fundamentalism,
just as those innocent Hindu children and women became in Pakistan.

> 
> I strongly feel for the innocent Hindus in other countries and feel 
> angered that the cowardly GOI has not asked these countries to protect them.
> But lets not fool ourselves into saying that whats happening in India
> is less heinous than what is happening elsewhere.
> 

Certainly the loss of life in the aftermath of destruction of the BM, is 
heinous in all countries - India, Pakistan, Bangladesh etc.
I wonder why people get so hyped up about a physical structure. Why is
it that physical symbols become more important to them than the
real tangibles like life ...

Let's not kid ourselves in believing that only the RSS/VHP/BJP or 
their leaders are to be blamed for it. I believe the Indian government as well
as various fundamentalist Islamic organizations as well as leaders in
neighboring countries are equally to be blamed for this heinous loss of life.
Why are leaders like Bukhari, M.J. Akbar etc who have incited Muslims in INdia 
frequently, the Bagladesh M.P. who made extreme remarks about killing HIndus, 
various Pakistani assembly members who make and direct communal hate 
propaganda on regular basis not arrested ?  Why are leaders of ISS, 
Muslim-League etc not arrested ? They too make and have made inciting
statements propelling hatred towards Hindus.

Don't kid yourself to believe 
that 'one-sided disarmament' of arresting HIndu radical revivalists would 
build the Hindu-Muslim harmony considering that 1000 years of historical 
violent strife has existed between the two communities in the INdian 
subcontinent.

Within India:

Any future Indian government (I am writing this off : this is a spineless,
self-incriminating, suppressive government - they have shown it with Sikhs,
they have now shown it with Hindus) should take the sentiments of all the
citizens of the country into account not just the Muslims.

Mr. Chavan who failed to bring about an agreement between the VHP and BM
committee, Mr. Rao who exhibited negligence and lack of creativity, 
Indian court justices who have been sitting on this case for years, 
they all should resign along with Advani, Joshi, Singhal etc.
This is what the Indian people, be they of any faith, deserve.

Let the people of India make a new beginning: an era of harmony and peace
among various religious groups. An era which would rival Akbar's time,
the only Mogul emperor worth consideration. Let there be dialogue and sharing 
among the people of various religious faiths. This is the only way to build
stable religious bridges. This is the only way to secure a stable prosperous
future for India.

Alok
Newsgroups: soc.culture.indian