Thousands of activists of different political parties and organisations participated in a massive demonstration in New Delhi on December 6, 2017, to commemorate 25 years of the ghastly crime committed by our rulers against our people – the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya and the state organized communal violence and massacres that followed. The demonstrators marched from Mandi House to Parliament, demanding punishment of the guilty and an end to state organized communal violence and genocide.
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Thousands of activists of different political parties and organisations participated in a massive demonstration in New Delhi on December 6, 2017, to commemorate 25 years of the ghastly crime committed by our rulers against our people – the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya and the state organized communal violence and massacres that followed. The demonstrators marched from Mandi House to Parliament, demanding punishment of the guilty and an end to state organized communal violence and genocide. They carried banners of their respective organisations as well as colourful banners and placards that read “Onward with the struggle to put an end to communal violence and state terrorism!“, ” Punish the guilty!”, “State terrorism – Down, Down!”, “An attack on one is an attack on all!”, “Unite against state organised communal violence and state terrorism!”, “Down with attack on the right to conscience”, etc. They militantly raised these and other slogans as they marched down the busy streets of central Delhi, culminating in a huge public rally in front of Parliament.
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The demonstration and rally were jointly organized by Lok Raj Sangathan, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Popular Front of India, Communist Ghadar Party of India, Social Democratic Party of India, Welfare Party of India, Jan Sangarsh Manch Haryana, Sikh Forum, United Muslim Front, Citizens for Democracy, Insaf, CPI (ML) – New Proletarian, Bhagat Singh Ambedkar Student Organisation, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, Hind Mazdoor Sabha (Ghaziabad), Mazdoor Ekta Committee, Campus Front, All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (Delhi), Purogami Mahila Sangathan, Hind Naujawan Ekta Sabha, NCHRO, Student Islamic Organization, Fraternity Movement of India, All-India Minority Christian Front, All-India Imams Council, Citizens Against Hate, Ambedkar Samaj Party and the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties.
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At the public rally held at Parliament, representatives of the participating organisations addressed the gathering. Speakers were unanimous in condemning the destruction of the Babri Masjid in full view of people and the media, by the top leadership of the BJP. The then Congress Party led central government and the BJP led government of UP colluded in carrying out this terrible crime against our people. They condemned the state-organised communal violence in Mumbai, Surat and many other places that followed the destruction of the Babri Masjid, in which thousands of people were killed. They pointed out that various Commissions of Enquiry have confirmed that BJP, Congress Party and Shiv Sena leaders had been involved in inciting the violence. However, nobody has been punished in the 25 years since these crimes were committed.
The President of Lok Raj Sangathan, S. Raghavan spoke of the historic rally that took place on 22nd February, 1993, at Ferozeshah Kotla in Delhi. It called for democratic renewal of the political process so as to empower the people and put an end to the domination of politics by criminalized parties like the BJP and the Congress. Today this movement for people’s empowerment is rapidly spreading among all sections of the oppressed people and we need to come together to take it forward, to put an end to these crimes by our rulers, he concluded.
Others speakers at the rally included Prof Apoorvanand of Delhi University, Shri Saleem Engineer of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Shri Mohd Ali Jinnah of Popular Front of India, Comrade Prakash Rao of Communist Ghadar Party of India, Shri A Sayeed of Social Democratic Party of India, Dr. S Q R Ilyas of Welfare Party of India, Comrade Phool Singh of Jan Sangarsh Manch Haryana, Shri Shahid Ali of United Muslim Front, Shri N D Pancholi of Citizens for Democracy, Comrade Sheomangal Siddhantkar of CPI (ML) – New Proletarian, Shri Jatin Gaura of Bhagat Singh Ambedkar Student Organisation, Shri Anwar of Association for Protection of Civil Rights, Comrade Lokesh of Mazdoor Ekta Committee, Shri P V Shoaib of Campus Front, Shri Navaid Hameed of All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (Delhi), Ms. Chhaya of Purogami Mahila Sangathan, Shri Ansaar Indori of NCHRO, Shri Nahaz of Student Islamic Organization, Shri Sharique Ansar of Fraternity Movement of India, Shri Philip Christie of All-India Minority Christian Front, Shri Mufti Ershad Shah of All-India Imams Council and Shri Rakesh of Bigul Mazdoor Dasta. Rousing poetry recited by Shri Siraj Talib greatly inspired the participants.
Comrade Prakash Rao, spokesperson of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, elaborated on how the Party considered the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December 1992 to be a turning point in Indian politics. The big bourgeoisie ruling our country needed to promote an alternative, suited to the aggressive pursuit of its imperialist aims. It organised the rise of BJP, presenting it as the only party that can champion the interests of the “Hindu majority” and take India into the global big power club. The Congress Party assumed the role of the secular alternative, contending and colluding with the BJP in dividing the people along communal and caste lines, while pursuing the same course of globalization through privatization and liberalization. He reaffirmed that Communist Ghadar Party is committed to the goal of establishing and defending a State that upholds and protects the right of every person to his or her beliefs and will render exemplary punishment to anyone who uses religion, caste, gender, nationality or race to violate the rights of any human being.
Sucharita of Lok Raj Sangathan summed up what speaker after speaker had emphasised, that it is not the people and their religious beliefs which are responsible for the “Ayodhya dispute” and the repeated incidents of large-scale communal violence. It is the ruling class and its state which are responsible. She pointed out that the struggle against communal violence must be directed against both the BJP and Congress Party and against the state which defends the rule of an exploiting minority over the whole society. She called on all to unite and carry forward the struggle to vest sovereignty in the people and put an end to communal violence and all forms of state terrorism.