Of temple claims and milking masjids: Are we already two nations?

Can the minority turn to the majority to stand by it when Hindu fanatics go on the offensive?

Must every generation be witness to whipped-up outrage over what the Mughals allegedly did hundreds of years ago? In Mumbai, a new generation of Muslims has grown up since the riots of December 1992-January 1993. Then, geographical distances vanished as violence broke out within hours of the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992. The violence lasted over two months and cost 900 lives; it transformed mixed areas into ghettos.

Thirty years later, Mumbai's new generation is confident and open. Though ghettos remain, there is a new comingling between young Hindus and Muslims in spaces opened up by the liberalisation of the economy. Reclaiming temples and demolishing masjids are not on their mind. But now, these issues are being forced on them by those unwilling to accept history, those who view Muslims and Christians as foreigners to be hated.

Already, the continuing attacks on minorities in BJP-ruled states, amplified on social media, have affected even those living in relative safety in states ruled by the Opposition – not that these are entirely free of random attacks on Muslims or riots. But the developments around the Gyanvapi Masjid and the Mathura Eidgah Masjid are on a different footing.

We know from the Babri Masjid experience that those who've approached the courts will not rest until these two historic masjids are demolished. This time, there's no LK Advani to take out a rath yatra to arouse sentiments of Hindus across the country as was done in 1990. But there is perhaps no need for one single rabble-rouser today. Hindutva's social media apparatus conveys messages full of hate and lies to lakhs of Hindus 24/7. This propaganda may not bring Hindus out on the streets, but it will build support for the vandalising mobs. Then there is the mainstream media. The Hindi press played an inflammatory role during the Ayodhya movement, but that was nothing compared to what the electronic media is doing now.

None of these fears would have arisen had the law been followed. But what can an ordinary citizen who just wants to live her/his life in peace do when those flouting the law are lower court judges? It is inconceivable that judges are unaware that a law was passed in 1991 that prevents the conversion of any place of worship from what it was at the time of Independence. That law itself was an act of appeasement of the BJP since it left out the Babri Masjid from its purview. Nevertheless, it did make us feel that the scars inflicted by the Ayodhya movement would be a one-time trauma.

In fact, the BJP, the only party interested in raking up these disputes, was so busy milking the Ram Mandir issue even after the Babri Masjid demolition that it left Mathura and Kashi alone for years. But Ayodhya can't be milked anymore. BJP supporters have already credited Narendra Modi with the decision made by the highest court to give the Ram temple to them, and Yogi Adityanath is transforming ancient Ayodhya into a modern tourist destination. What more can be done?

Muslims accepted the unfair Ayodhya decision with anguish but without protests on the streets. They are now being advised by community leaders (though not by Muslim politicians) to control their anger at the developments in Benares and Mathura, developments that are, ultimately, the outcome of judges ignoring a central law, and setting in motion the process of converting mosques into temples.

Always, it's the minority that's advised restraint – by the police, by secularists, by their own community – even when they've done nothing to initiate a dispute. Who will tell the majority to control their religious feelings? No secular government did so; this government is run by those who organised the biggest display of Hindu might on December 6, 1992!

Courts have the power to rein in the brute might of the majority. But that role seems to have disappeared. The Varanasi court's order sealing the Gyanvapi Masjid pond was made without hearing the Masjid's committee; as if that didn't violate natural justice, the sealing was upheld by the Supreme Court, even if only for two days.

Can the minority then turn to the majority to stand by it when Hindu fanatics go on the offensive? Unfortunately, even where such empathy exists, it is not enough to counter State-backed hatred and violence.

There is another disturbing fallout of these disputes. Our national monuments, such as the Qutub Minar and the Taj Mahal, which generations have visited with pride and pleasure, are now being projected as "Muslim" monuments. So are Konark and Mahabalipuram only "Hindu" monuments? Are we already two nations?

(Jyoti Punwani is a journalist)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.