Mandir-Masjid imbroglio

Sir, - The controversy over the Mandir-Masjid issue has raised its ugly head again, thanks to the observation of the Prime Minister recently to the effect that the Hindus and Muslims could come to an agreement by which a Ram temple could be built on the disputed site in Ayodhya while a mosque could come up at an alternative site. Somehow, the reverse possibility did not seem to occur to him.

Certain Muslim organisations have been insisting that the Masjid be rebuilt on the same site. In principle this looks like a valid demand both legally and morally. But it is not a practicable solution for the reason that such a move is sure to incite the Sangh Parivar to resume mayhem and violence. The present establishment does not seem to be capable of containing such a conflagration. The Muslims will have to pay too high a price for their pyrrhic victory.

The second solution being touted by the Sangh Parivar including the Prime Minister is that a Ram temple be built on the site of the demolished structure and a mosque be constructed on a separate site with the abundant good will of the Hindus. Needless to say this is nothing but adding insult to injury. After all, the Muslims are not suffering from a dearth of mosques in Ayodhya to offer their prayers in. Moreover a Ram temple built on the ruins of a vandalised mosque would turn out to be standing monument to religious fanaticism and a blot on the face of the nation. It would also be a symbol of the triumph of lawlessness over the rule of law and of might over right.

A third idea being toyed with is that both a temple and a mosque be built on the site, perhaps adding, for good measure, a church, a gurudwara, etc. But it is a moot point whether such a multiple religious complex would promote religious harmony or exacerbate it, judging from what is happening right now at the Baba Budangiri Hills in Karnataka. Given the vitiated communal atmosphere in the country, a conglomeration of religious institutions may well turn out to be a hotbed of communalist mischief.

In these circumstances the smartest way to get over the impasse would be to build a purely secular structure on the site. It would be in the fitness of things to establish a research centre there to conduct studies on communalism. This would be the most appropriate denouement of the most disruptive episode in the history of the country since the tragedy of partition.

P. A. Khader Kukkady,

Mangalore (Karnataka)

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