Two groups of students of the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Calicut, Kerala, clashed with each other after one group protested against the Ram Mandir’s prana pratishtha ceremony which took place in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh on Monday, January 22.
Two students were assaulted in the process. As police tried to calm the situation, a student shouted, “India is not Rama Rajya” in response to “Jai Shri Ram”.
A complaint has been lodged at the Kunnamangalam police.
FTI raise ‘Remember Babri’ banner
The students’ association of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTI) raised banners with the message ‘Remember Babri’ inside the campus premises as the inaugural ceremony was underway in Ayodhya.
A special screening of Anand Patwardhan’s award-winning documentary ‘Ram ke Naam’ was also screened along with a photo exhibition.
The photo exhibition was in remembrance of December 6, 1992, when a mob of Hindu nationalists led by then-senior BJP leaders including the late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, LK Advani and Uma Bharati to name a few, demolished the 16th-century Babri Masjid. The event caused the death of over 2000 people, mainly Muslims along with destruction and displacement.
‘Never forgive’ Jamia students protests
In New Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia, a group of students boycotted classes and raised slogans such as ‘RSS Down Down’ and ‘Strike for Babri’. As police tried to control the situation, a protestor shouted, “We shall never forgive, and we shall never forget this incident. We will continue our strike and boycott the class.”
JNU reads the Preamble
The Preamble of the Indian Constitution was read by several students and faculty members at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) premises in the national capital on Monday.
Earlier in the day, several well-known actors and filmmakers from the Malayalam film industry also posted images of the Preamble on social media platforms.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, chief minister Yogi Adiyanath, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwant and Ram Janmabhoomi Trust chairman Mahant Nrityagopal Das inaugurated the Ram mandir amid grand celebrations in the temple town.
Brief history
The recently inaugurated Ram Temple in Ayodhya stands on the historic site where the 16th-century Babri Masjid once stood. While the Hindutva elements claimed Babri was built on the ruins of a temple that was razed down by Muslim invaders, the Muslim community deny the claim.
On December 6, 1992, a mob of Hindu nationalists, led by then senior BJP leaders LK Advani, former Prime Minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Uma Bharati among others, marched towards the mosque and demolished it.
The dispute over the ownership dragged on for years when in 2019, the Supreme Court of India gave the verdict in favour of the Hindu groups.
The Bharatiya Janata Party had long promised the construction of the Ram Temple, and its inauguration is anticipated to bolster the party’s prospects in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The temple’s establishment marks a significant chapter in India’s socio-political landscape, reflecting the complex historical and religious dimensions surrounding the Ayodhya dispute.
The Ram temple has been one of the major poll promises of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The temple’s inauguration, reflecting India’s changing socio-political landscape, is anticipated as a catalyst for the saffron party in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
