PNN – The debates surrounding the establishment of this temple do not end only with the government’s propaganda abuse, but many are worried that this event will also lead to a course of hatred and revenge by extreme Hindus.
In India, a grand ceremony is held to mark the opening of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the same place where the Babri Masjid once stood. This holy place in Uttar Pradesh state in northern India, which has been the site of conflict for decades, was destroyed in 1992 by Hindu extremists, who were the main instigators of the current prime minister and his party. But it seems that the opening of this great temple, which was founded with the budget of 220 million dollars of Narendra Modi’s government, is not very auspicious for the people of India and has been accompanied by many controversies and worries.
In a situation where Modi has planned a spectacular ceremony for this event and raised it to the level of a national celebration; The half-finished building of the temple and the haste shown by the government in opening it have convinced many rivals and critics of the government that this event should be treated as a propaganda program and in fact the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s first campaign for this year’s general elections. Accordingly, most of the opposition parties, led by the Congress party, have decided to boycott the event and described it as a “political party” rather than a national and religious event. On the other hand, the BJP and its supporters have used the same issue to accuse these parties of supporting Muslims and opposing the Hindu religion.
But the debates surrounding the establishment of this temple do not end only with the abuse of propaganda by the government. Many in India are worried that this incident will create a course of hatred and revenge by the extremist Hindus who consider themselves followers of the extremist school of “Hindutva”. That too in a country that was considered a model for ethnic, cultural and religious diversity and in fact a symbol of “unity in the same diversity”.
Muslims in India are most concerned about this issue, especially as there are rumors of similar projects being implemented for other mosques by Hindu extremists. But this concern and helplessness can also be seen in the views of prominent Indian Non-Muslim analysts: “Prime Minister Modi has now donned the mantle of the King of India. It is a terrifying prospect for any right measure of democracy… [God] Ram, the shining beacon of justice, compassion and imagination, has become a mere tool. . .. At the same time, they consider the recent events in India to be comparable to the events of the 1930s: “The creation of an ethnic nationalist state with the cult of power and violence, the worship of purity and the concentration of power. This is a project that will never lead to a good end. These are the things that brought about the devastating wars of Europe and the partition of India.”