From the Urdu Press: ‘Sambhal case reflects a mindset… file cases, raise doubts over Muslim sites’, ‘For EVM campaign, Oppn needs to build public consensus’ | Political Pulse News
Days after violence convulsed Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal over a court-ordered survey at the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid in the town, in which at least four people were killed, a local court in Rajasthan’s Ajmer admitted a petition seeking a survey at the 13th-century Ajmer Sharif Dargah. Similar petitions claiming that various other mosques or shrines were allegedly built on the sites of Hindu temples have been pending in several courts in different parts of the country. Carrying these reports over the week, the Urdu dailies expressed concerns and despair over the spike in such cases, even as they questioned the relevance of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, which bars the conversion of the religious character of a place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947 barring the Ayodhya case.
INQUILAB
Commenting on an Ajmer court’s move to admit a petition filed by the Hindu Sena which sought a survey at the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, the New Delhi edition of Inquilab, in its December 1 editorial, writes: “This fresh case reflects the same communally divisive mindset that first makes unfounded claims, then moves courts to seek surveys of various religious or cultural sites of the Muslim community in a bid to put them under suspicion.” This has been the pattern in several sites including Shahi Jama Masjid in UP’s Sambhal, Uttarkashi mosque in Uttarakhand, Gyanvapi mosque in UP, and Hubballi Idgah in Karnataka, the editorial says. “In the case of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya too, the politics of hate was built up leading to its demolition, although in 2019 the Supreme Court Constitution Bench, drawing the curtains on this dispute, handed over the site for construction of a Ram Temple.”
The daily says these rows betray a cynical agenda to establish the “supremacy of one religion, one community and one culture” in the country. As part of it, attempts are being made to “undermine equality and diversity, democracy and the Constitution”.
Ajmer Dargah has been one of the most revered Sufi shrines with a history of 800 years, which has always attracted people from all sections and communities from across the country and the world, the editorial notes. From commoners to rulers, Presidents to Prime Ministers, politicians to celebrities, multitudes of pilgrims have paid their obeisance to the shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti — one of the pivotal figures of Sufism — or sent chadars to the Dargah.
Devotees offer prayers at Ajmer Sharif Dargah. People from all faiths and all walks of life come to pay their respects to the Khwaja. (PTI/File)
“The petition in the case is clearly a bid to challenge the immense spiritual, social and cultural resonance of Ajmer Dargah in the country,” the editorial says. The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 prohibits changing the character of religious places from how they existed on August 15, 1947 with the exception of the Ayodhya case, but the 2022 observation of an apex court Bench headed by then Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud in the Gyanvapi case — that this law did not expressly bar ascertaining the religious character of a place of worship — has opened a Pandora’s box, giving fillip to lower courts to entertain such pleas, the daily states.
The edit adds that the Supreme Court order now staying the Sambhal court proceedings and asking the mosque committee to move the high court, while underlining that peace and harmony must prevail, has given a “new ray of hope”. “This is unimaginable that even Ajmer Dargah, which is a symbol of spiritualism and love, harmony and peace in the country, could be in the crosshairs of disruptive elements. Targeting such sites is tantamount to hurting humanity.”
URDU TIMES
Pointing out that it has been 10 days since the declaration of the Maharashtra Assembly poll results, the Mumbai-based Urdu Times, in its leader on December 3, says that the Mahayuti, which swept the polls, has still not been able to put in place its government and declare its Chief Minister due to a lack of consensus between its partners. The BJP leadership is sending Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and ex-Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani as observers for the BJP Legislature Party meeting that would elect its leader to head the new government. “In its campaign, the BJP and Mahayuti had given the slogan of ‘Ek hain toh safe hain’, but their own jostling for portfolios projects a different reality,” the editorial says, noting that the BJP has announced that the swearing-in of the new CM would be held in Mumbai’s Azad Maidan on Wednesday.
“Shiv Sena chief and caretaker CM Eknath Shinde is in a sulk. While he seems to have reconciled with his senior partner BJP’s bid to have its own CM, he is sticking to his claim for the Home portfolio, which the BJP is not ready to concede. There are various other ministerial berths over which there seem to be sharp differences between the two allies,” the daily says. “The state of affairs belies the Mahayuti’s unity pitch while exposing their play for power.”
The governance in the state has taken a hit due to the delay in the swearing-in as several administrative decisions have been frozen for 10 days, the editorial notes. This has also sparked various speculations. “Shinde’s son Shrikant has denied the buzz that he was in the race to become the Deputy CM,” the edit states. “The BJP is trying to placate Shinde, who is telling the media that he would do what the BJP high command decides. There appears to be disquiet in the ruling camp with tension marking the equations between its two leading players,” it says, adding that the Maharashtra people are meanwhile on the tenterhooks waiting for their new CM.
SIASAT
Referring to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s statement that his party would launch a movement to press for replacing electronic voting machines (EVMs) with paper ballots, the Hyderabad-based Siasat, in its November 28 editorial, says that the EVM row has been simmering in the country for several years, with a section of the Opposition expressing doubts about the integrity of these machines. The Supreme Court has now dismissed a PIL which sought re-introduction of ballot papers in place of EVMs, the editorial notes. “After every election, doubts are raised by some quarters over the role of EVMs. The representations are then also made to the Election Commission (EC) over it. The EC has however maintained that EVMs are fully tamper-proof and that they could not be manipulated,” it says. “The Opposition is not satisfied by the EC’s stand, though. The apex court’s order however seems to have settled the case legally.”
Following its defeat in the Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly elections, the Congress has now decided to take to the streets to mount a countrywide campaign against EVMs or electoral malpractices, the daily says. “The Congress believes that its INDIA bloc allies would join its movement as they have been equally concerned over the matter. SP chief Akhilesh Yadav is on the same page with the Congress against EVMs. Despite getting the better of the BJP in UP in recent Lok Sabha polls, Akhilesh had opposed EVMs.”
Although the Congress has not worked out the details of its movement yet, the party should take into account the legal aspects before kicking it off, the editorial states, adding that NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar has stressed on the need for setting up legal teams for a judicial campaign. “By reaching out to people, the Opposition could create public awareness over the EVM issue. But it must undertake the campaign prudently. The Opposition could put pressure on the government only if manages to build a significant public consensus over it.”
The daily says the Congress should take its INDIA allies into confidence rather than taking a decision unilaterally on the issue. “The Congress should hold deliberations with the leadership of its INDIA partners. It should launch a movement after ensuring a consensus among the Opposition parties. Only then could the campaign be expected to be effective.”
