After SC revived criminal conspiracy charges against BJP veteran L K Advani and 20 others in Babri demolition case on Wednesday, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) lashed out at the Central Bureau of Investigation for appealing against Allahabad HC judgment. He also urged the central government to pass a bill to build a Ram Mandir at the disputed site at the earliest. Miffed that CBI called Hindu leaders as conspirators and pleaded before the court to retain the charges dropped by Allahabad court, VHP ‘s International Working President Pravin Togadia said, “What was the need for CBI, which works under the central government, to challenge the HC decision? We demand CBI change its stand and appeal in front of a larger bench of apex court.”
The SC decision comes as a major setback for the BJP as its leaders Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti and Kalyan Singh will now face conspiracy charges in the case. Togadia added, “As CBI works under the control of centre, it can change its stand. It has done so in the past cases under various governments. We also demand that centre pass a bill to build Ram Mandir at the disputed site at the earliest.” Calling Muslims “conspirators”, Togadia sought charges of conspiracy be framed against Babar, his followers and mullahs and maulvis of the mosques which were allegedly built after the demolition of Hindu temples.
“Does CBI wants that 90-year-old Vishnu Hari Dalmia who has left his business empire for the cause of Hindus be jailed when he is bed-ridden? Should Advani, Joshi and Ritambhara go to jail? The real conspirators are Babar and his followers who should be charged for conspiracy as they have demolished 30,000 temples to build mosques,” said Togadia. Togadia termed ethnic cleansing of Hindus in Kashmir another huge conspiracy and demanded a case of criminal conspiracy be filed against J & K govt. “CBI has insulted 100 crore Hindus. To me the biggest conspiracy is cleansing of 4 lakh Hindus from Kashmir; 4 lakh Hindu Pandits were displaced and hundreds killed and deprived of their properties. Why should Hindus be always insulted and abused in this country? ” he said.
Asked whether CBI’s stand on the Babri case had anything to do with relationshipgone- sour between Modi and Advani, Togadia replied: “I don’t know anything about it.” It was in 1990, after LK Advani’s Ram Rath Yatra, that the VHP gained a significant foothold in Ayodhya. Togadia had then supported the event by declaring 101Ram jyot yatras and 15,000 Vijaydashmi yatras. He also mobilised thousands of kar sevaks during the Kar Seva.
‘Jama Masjid in city is built on Kali temple’
Dr Togadia threatened that if CBI does not change its stand, Hindus will be “forced to reply, in a democratic way, to 30,000 mosques in the country that were built by demolishing temples”. “We want conspiracy cases against all the mullahs and maulvis of these 30,000 mosques built on temple land. Muslims demolished our big temples like Kashi Vishwanath, Mathura and Babri to build mosques. Even the Jama mosque of Ahmedabad was built on Kali temple,” Togadia alleged. However, Jama Masjid’s pesh-eimam Shabbir Ahmed Siddiki has rubbished Togadia’s allegations.
“Muslims ruled in this country for 800 years. If they indeed wanted to demolish temples, Gujarat would not have had so many ancient temples it has today. Ahmedabad was built by Ahmed Shah. How can a temple exist here when there was no city before he came? Togadia must first prove that a temple existed at the Babri mosque site and then talk of 30,000 temples.”