Hotline Asia Urgent Appeals -- UA020207(3)

Action Requested || Sample Letter || Background
Please respond on or before 28 February 2002
Update

Summary

There is increased anxiety of violence occurring between different communities in Uttar Pradesh (UP), a northern region of India, as the construction of the controversial Temple for Lord Ram (the Hindu god) in Ayodhya, is expected to start in March 2002. This anxiety is further escalated by the forthcoming UP election in February 2002.

Since the demolition of the Babri Masjid (Babri Mosque, a Muslim temple) in December 1992 - which resulted in great violence and killings - the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a group under the Sangh Parivar Hindu fundamentalist movement, has been aiming to build a Ram Mandir (a temple for the Lord Ram) at the very place where the mosque formerly stood. The question of which community has title to the site has since been pending in the courts. However, elements of the Sangh Parivar have continued pressurising the government to make a commitment to allow the construction of the Ram Mandir.

To further intensify things, Indian Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee announced in August 2001 that a "solution" to the dispute in Ayodhya would be possible by March 2002. This surprised the All India Muslim Personnel Law Board (AIMPLB) who maintained that no solution was possible outside the purview of the courts. It is believed that the Prime Minister's announcement was made with the intention of affecting the forthcoming elections in UP.

According to human rights groups, from their experience, the present government machinery has not been able to deal with the forces of extremism effectively. There is increasing danger of violence, destruction and bloodshed once again as the construction date, as well as the election, approaches.

Please write polite letters to express your concern about the VHP's intention to act before a ruling of the courts and construct a Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. Request the authorities to:

• control and settle the issue peacefully to avoid violence,

• await and abide by the courts' decision on the disputed land, and

• take legal action against those groups who inflict violence on the innocent in the name of religion.

Sample Letter

Background

The Babri Masjid (or Babri Mosque) was constructed in the 15th Century by the Mughal king Babur in the city of Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (UP), an important place of pilgrimage for Hindus. Historically, since its construction, this place of worship has been a source of dispute between Muslims and Hindus, both claiming their right to it as their long-time place of worship, and this has caused much destruction and conflict in history.

On 1 February 1986, district judge K.M. Pandey ordered that the gates of the Babri Masjid opened and Hindus be allowed to worship at the shrine which Hindu fundamentalist groups claim is the birthplace of the supreme Hindu god, Lord Ram. This order was broadcast on national television, apparently intended to help then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi win back Hindu support for his Congress Party. Less than six months later on 11 November 1986, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), both part of the Sangh Parivar movement, started to lay the foundation stone for a Ram temple on the land that local Muslims claimed belonged to the Waqf community trust. Thus, the first clouds of India's worst communal storm were starting to build up.

In November 1992, warning signs were evident: a plainclothes police officer had noted the contents of a billboard which stated that Bal Thackeray (the leader of the Shiv Sena, a Hindu fundamentalist groups linked to both the BJP and VHP) would 'go to Ayodhya with thousands of' supporters. The billboard proclaimed that 'the construction of the temple is inevitable.' At the end of November 1992, a VHP-BJP spokesperson held a press briefing, informing of the departure of their supporters to Ayodhya. Similar press conferences were held on a daily basis until 3 December 1992.

On 6 December 1992, thousands of supporters of the Hindu fundamentalist opinion were sent to Ayodhya to demolish the Babri Masjid and to place an idol of the Lord Ram in the place. In a well-planned manner, the mosque was demolished in a span of five and a half hours. The whole nation was plunged into communal riots, resulting in a trail of violence: more than a thousand people were killed in the riots following the demolition and many were seriously injured and rendered homeless. Women and children were the worst sufferers in this violence, being humiliated, gang raped and burnt to death.

Subsequently, a judicial procedure was implemented to deal with the dispute. This was done with the hope of avoiding further violence by preventing religious fanatics from taking matters into their own hands. It was hoped that the parties at conflict would have to abide by a court's ruling, or they could be legally penalised. However, in 2002, almost 10 years after the demolition of Babri Masjid, the case of who has title to the disputed land at Ayodhya is still unresolved.

The All India Muslim Personnel Law Board (AIMPLB) insists that no solution would be possible without the verdict of the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court, where all appeals on the case are pending. On the other hand, the VHP opposes a court verdict on the issue, complaining that it has been pending in court for the past 50 years without progress. The VHP President V. H. Dalmia accused Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee of doing nothing to resolve the Ram temple issue, threatening to withdraw VHP support for the Prime Minister.

Spearheaded by the VHP, the deadline for temple reconstruction has already been set by Hindu fundamentalist for 12 March 2002. It is no secret to the government that more than half the materials for construction work of stone blocks, pillars and doors for the temple have already been completed. As the deadline for the planned commencement of the temple construction approaches, the country's attention is focused on Ayodhya.

The Ayodhya issue is believed to have been raised on and off in the past decades, depending on the needs of Sangh Parivar politics. As the UP elections approach, it is alleged that they have again raised this issue to gain an appeal on the emotional level for their candidates and the BJP. Presently, since the opposition has majority in the Upper House, elections in UP, which is the largest legislative assemblies with 425 members, will be important. Apparently to garner votes for the forthcoming UP election in February 2002, according to reports, during his visit to Lucknow in UP in August 2001, Prime Minister Vajpayee told the media that a solution to the controversial Ayodhya dispute would be possible by March 2002. This announcement had further worsened the already tense situation.

As part of its continuing campaign to rouse public opinion in favour of temple construction, the VHP held a "Chetvani" (or "warning") rally from Ayodhya to Delhi on 27 January 2002. According to local sources, it comprised of a team of 10 representatives from the VHP and the Ramjanmabhoomi Nyas (Ram's birthplace committee). There was reportedly a three hour confrontational meeting with the Prime Minister, trying to pin him down to make a commitment. But the PM was equally belligerent and has finally referred the issue to the law ministry.

All these activities inevitably make the people in Ayodhya and the neighbouring Faizabad apprehensive. There is concern that the fundamentalist elements' preparation for the construction, together with the tension in the coming election would again result in great violence similar to the events of 1992.

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