Dec 6 - Black Day For Muslim India

[AFDAL]

New Delhi, Dec 6 (IANS) MPs from Left parties, Samajwadi Party (SP) and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Wednesday staged a sit-in outside parliament, demanding the arrest of those responsible for the demolition of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya 14 years ago.

The MPs asked the government to take immediate steps to arrest BJP leaders, who were charged for the demolition of the shrine, including Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani.

Hindu mobs, belonging mainly to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the BJP, razed the 16th-century mosque Dec 6, 1992, alleging it was built on the site of an ancient temple dedicated to Hindu god Ram. The event triggered nationwide communal violence.

The MPs said BJP leaders like Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi should resign from parliament. They also raised slogans saying that Advani be hanged for the "crime".

Led by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MPs Sitaram Yechury, Brinda Karat, SP leaders Jaya Bachchan, Amar Singh and Mohan Singh, the members held placards and shouted slogans like "Down, Down Communalism" and "Punish the culprits of Babri demolition".

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Though Mr Ram ( if he existed was a king ) - which the Brahmin use to pray him.

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Hyderabad, Dec 6 (IANS) Several Andhra Pradesh towns were partially closed and life in the old city here came to a standstill Wednesday in response to a shutdown call to mark the 14th anniversary of the razing of the Babri Masjid.

Tight security was made in the state capital and other parts of the state in view of the call given by some Muslim groups to observe 'black day' and plans by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to celebrate 'victory day'.

Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), Majlis Bachao Tehreek and other Muslim parties called a shutdown to protest the demolition of the mosque. Some Muslim groups also urged Muslims to offer prayers for reconstruction of the mosque.

The shutdown call evoked partial response in towns like Nizamabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar and Warangal in Telangana region with sizeable Muslim populations. Most Muslim traders shut down their businesses in response to the call.

The shutdown was total in the Muslim-majority old city. Shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed while the usually busy Charminar area and adjoining markets were deserted.

Most buses of the state-owned Road Transport Corp were taken off the roads and only a few vehicles were seen plying.

Black flags were hoisted atop houses, shops and intersections in the old city as policemen and personnel of paramilitary forces kept a vigil in the communally sensitive area.

Public meetings, rallies and demonstrations were banned in the old city as a precaution.

A Muslim group Darasgah Jihad-o-Shadat, however, was permitted to hold a rally near Indira Park in the central part of the city as were some women organisations who held public meetings.

[AFDAL]

Chennai, Dec 6 (IndianMuslims.info) Demonstrations and black flag protests by various Muslim organisations marked the 14th anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition throughout the state today.

In Chennai, over 2500 members of Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamaath (TNTJ), Indian National League (INL), Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (TNMMK), gathered outside the Chennai Collectorate, Park Town Post office and Valluvarkottam and held peaceful demonstrations, amidst heightened security.

The groups demanded speedy completion of the trail in cases relating to the demolition, re-construction of the mosque in its original site and handing over the site to the Wakf Board.

In Coimbatore, 2000 persons, belonging to two Muslim outfits and a Hindu outfit were arrested today when they tried to stage demonstrations at various places in the district. Police had given permission to TMMK and TTJ to stage black flag demonstrations only in the city, while permission had been refused in the rural areas of the district.

Nearly 1,000 persons, including 200 women, belonging to both organisations were arrested for defying the ban and attempting to stage demonstrations in two different places in Tirupur.
About 500 others were taken into custody in Pollachi and Mettupalayam for the same reason, police said.

Meanwhile, about 500 TMMK and 200 TTJ workers staged separate demonstrations in the city and raised slogans seeking the arrests of BJP leaders L K Advani, Uma Bharati and VHP leaders Ashok Singhal and Praveen Togadia, for their alleged role in the demolition.

In another incident, 570 Hindu Munnani activists were arrested in Pollachi and Tirupur, for attempting to stage demonstration to celebrate 'Victory Day' and also demanding construction of Ram Mandir at the site in Ayodhya,police said.

A Pondicherry report said that a large number of muslims, including women, staged a demonstration in front of the head post office, in response to the call given by Puduvai Thouheed Jamaath.

S M Thaseen president of the Jamaath, who led the demonstration, said the demands include speedy trial of the Babri Masjid demolition case and handing over of the disputed site to Muslims.

There was heavy deployment of police at places of worship, the Central Railway station and bus stands, report said.

Reports from Madurai said about 535 members, including 50 women, of the Tamilnadu Thowheed Jamath, led by Abdul Khader, staged a demonstration in front of the Tallakulam Post office.

Police said tight security arrangments were made at the Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple. Devotees were being allowed to enter the temple through the East, South and Rajagopuram entries while the West and North gates would remain exit routes, police said.

Two companies of the Tamil Nadu Special police and over 2500 police personnel, along with Armed Reserve police, were posted at "sensitive" areas across the city, police said.

A Nagapattinam report said that about 600 Muslims, including 100 women of the TNMMK (South) district, staged a black flag demonstration in front of the main bus stand for about half an hour.

A similar demonstration was also held by members of the Tamil Nadu Douhit Jamath near Anna Statuem, the report said. Both groups dispersed after about 40 minutes, police said.

[AFDAL]

COUNCIL of INDIAN MUSLIMS (UK) / PRESS RELEASE

"Babri Mosque Demolition has a symbolic Relation with the General Discrimination Against Indian Muslims"? UK Muslims

London, 6 December, 2006: British Indian Muslims have urged the Indian Government to handover the Babri Mosque site to Indian Muslims and let them rebuild the mosque there. Marking the 15th anniversary of the demolition of the 14th century historic Mosque in Ayodhya in 1992, Britain’s two leading Indian Muslim organisations, Council of Indian Muslims­ UK (CIM) and Indian Muslim Federation (IMF) have issued a joint statement here today.

“The demolition of the Babri Mosque was not only a serious blow to Indian secularism and the fundamental rights granted by the Indian Constitution to the religious minorities, but it also symbolised the virtual subjugation of Muslim identity in the post-1947 India.” CIM’s Chairman Mr Munaf Zeena said.

“Babri Mosque is an inseparable part of the Indo-Islamic heritage, which grew and flourished for almost a 1000 years. It actually redefined the meaning of religious tolerance and cultural cohesion in the Indian Sub-continent. However, the continuous denial of justice to Muslims, letting the perpetrators go scot-free and Government’s failure in handing over the Mosque site to Muslims, the rightful owners, is a threat to that precious Indo-Islamic heritage, the symbol of peaceful coexistence in India.” He added.

Zeena also said, “While hundreds of Muslims implicated in the Bombay blasts of 1992 were still suffering from the discriminatory policies of the police, the arrests of Muslim youths in Malegaon for bombing a mosque is the cruelest joke played with the victims.”

“If the Indian Government is really serious in doing justice with Muslims and restoring their confidence, these youths must immediately be released and CBI inquiry into these blasts setup.”

IMF’s Vice President Cllr Irfan Mustafa said, “The demolition of the Babri Mosque has a symbolic relation to the social and economic injustice with Indian Muslims and their all round backwardness.”

He added, “The findings of the Sachar Committee Report have shown that far from being a pampered lot, as the Sangh Parivar has been propagating, Muslims are economically backward, educationally marginalised and politically subjugated.”


COUNCIL of INDIAN MUSLIMS (UK)
66c Cazenove Road, Stoke Newington, London N16 6AA UK Tel: 020 8806 1147 Fax: 020 8806 6859, www.coim.org.uk , Email: info@coim.org.uk
For further information please contact Munaf Zeena on 07947 465958; Irfan Mustafa may be contacted at: 07801 3736