By Pervez Bari
Calicut: The Popular Front of India, (PFI), has called upon the people to break silence and speak up for justice on the Supreme Court judgement in the Babri Masjid title suit which is unjust and hence unacceptable.
“It is against freedom of religious practices granted to minorities as a fundamental right. Moreover, this verdict is also against all democratic principles and constitutional values. Also it degrades people’s faith in our judicial system and its high esteem and credibility even at international level”, the PFI said in statement.
Addressing a joint Press Conference O M. A. Salam, Vice Chairman, and M. Mohammed Ali Jinnah, General Secretary of PFI, said the apex court has handed over the entire Babri Masjid land for the construction of Ram temple. And the Muslims are allowed to build Babri Masjid only in an alternate land. Though the apex court has reiterated the facts that Masjid was not constructed after demolishing any temple and agreed that the placing of idols in the Masjid and demolition of the Masjid were violations of law, the operative part of the verdict is contrary to these approved facts. In essence, the ownership rights of the original owners of the encroached and demolished Masjid land are totally rejected and the encroachers and law breakers are allowed to construct Ram temple on the same site, they added.
Salam said the world was witness to the various incidents of organised vandalism against Babri Masjid ultimately leading to its demolition. The promise by the then Prime Minister that the Masjid will be rebuilt on the same land still remains unfulfilled.
He said that this not merely a Masjid-Mandir dispute. Instead of basing on records, this judgement has given more weight to majority faiths and religious claims. The verdict has gone beyond even the prayers of the litigants in the original title suit. The majoritarian interests are given priority over principles of justice. Hence, with the Supreme Court verdict the issue is not getting settled, but it may strengthen many more issues regarding Hindu temple claims of Minority religious places. The RSS created an atmosphere of fear and silence and employed various pressure tactics for the same, well in advance of the verdict. RSS has themselves projected itself as the sole representatives of Hindu rights.
Jinnah said that the dissent is a democratic right and civil responsibility. All systems of democracy have to get corrected, including the judiciary, when they go wrong. In this situation, Popular Front of India calls upon the people to break silence and speak up for justice.
Other office-bearers of PFI attending the Press Conference included: Abdul Wahid Sait, Secretary; E. M. Abdul Rahiman, Member, NEC, and Nasaruddin Elamaram, State President