VHP to bring 1990 firing incident back from the dead

In an obvious attempt to revive memories of the Ram temple movement, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad is planning to observe the 25th anniversary of firing on karsevaks in Ayodhya in a big way.

A programme will be held at Karsevakpuram, the VHP’s local headquarters in Ayodhya, to recall the services and sacrifices made by the “martyrs” of the Ram Temple Movement.

The convenor of the programme is Ms Purnima Kothari, the sister of Ram and Sharad Kothari who were among those killed in police firing.

It may be recalled that on November 2, 1992, the police had opened fire on volunteers who had assembled near the disputed structure to perform a symbolic karseva for the construction of the Ram temple. Later, the VHP claimed that 16 people, including Kothari brothers from Kolkata, died in the firing.

The VHP also took out “asthi kalash yatras” with urns carrying the ashes of those martyred in the firing and vowed to intensify the movement for Ram temple.

Those expected to attend the event are leaders who had played a key role in the temple movement and these include Union ministers Uma Bharti and Manoj Sinha, BJP MPs Vinay Katiyar and Yogi Adityanath, VHP leaders Ashok Singhal, Mahant Nritya Gopal Das and Acharya Dharmendra.

Ms Purnima Kothari, who is the president of Kolkata-based “Kothari Bandhu Sewa Trust”, established in the memory of her two brothers, said that all the prominent guests have confirmed their arrival on the day, except Ashok Singhal, who is unwell.

Significantly, the VHP, which had stopped observing the anniversary of the November 2 firing after the demolition of the Babri mosque in December 1990, has decided to revive the event on the 25 anniversary of the incident.

The event, incidentally, will definitely embarrass the BJP which is in power at the Centre because the party has been trying to put the temple issue on the backburner and is using development as its plank.

It will also embarrass the Samajwadi Party which was in power when the police firing took place. The Samajwadi Party is now trying to project a Hindu-friendly image and is reaching out to the majority community with a slew of projects. Revival of the November 2, 1990 firing incident is bound to cause discomfort to the ruling party.

“The event, at this juncture, is bound to fuel communal passions – more so because the communal cauldron is already on the boil in the state,” said a senior political commentator Dr Suman Gupta.