Hyderabad: Sticking to his words and defying police orders against using DJ systems, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Goshamahal MLA Raja Singh on Sunday, April 6, used high-volume sound systems during the annual Sri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra in Hyderabad. His words during the rally also, as usual, egged on hate speech, with him saying “Tel lagaya Dabur ka, naam mitaya Babur ka, (we used Dabur oil, erased the name of Babur)” reference to the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
‘Ek Dhakka lagat tha. Tel lagaya Dabur ka, naam mitaya Babur Ka. Ek dhakka laga tha na, toh abhi dusra dhakka lagane ke liye tayyar hona hai. Toh agar yahan dhakke lagenge toh wahan kya dhakka lagenga, (One push was given. We applied oil from Dabur, and erased the name of Babur. One push was given, right? Now we must be ready to give a second push. So if there are pushes here, what kind of push will happen there?)” said Raja Singh during the Ram Navami procession that started from near Begum Bazar on Sunday in the Old City of Hyderabad.
The previous day, Raja Singh personally inspected the DJ system at Dhoolpet and made suggestions regarding lighting arrangements. According to his followers, it is one of the latest sound systems capable of generating high-decibel sounds. The BJP MLA had already declared that the Ram Navami procession “would not be disrupted” by any orders or notifications from the authorities.
Raja Singh and his yearly Ram Navami rallies
The Hyderabad police this year asked organisers of the Sree Rama Navami Shobha Yatra processions to follow the ‘ban on playing DJ systems’.
Last year in September, police commissioner CV Anand issued orders prohibiting Disc Jockey (DJ) sound systems during religious processions in the city. According to a press release from the police, the use of DJ sound systems, DJ sound mixers, sound amplifiers and other high sound-generating equipment, appliances capable of producing such sound are prohibited during religious processions.
However, the Hyderabad police have allowed the use of sound systems with certain restrictions in the sound decibel limits. In videos from the Ram Navami rally headed by Raja Singh, it is evident that high sound-generating equipment was used.
The Afzalgunj police last year booked Raja Singh for carrying out an unauthorised rally during the Sri Ram Navami procession on April 17 without permission. The legislator, who sang Islamophobic songs as always, was booked under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for violating orders, as he did not have permission.
He sang a new song at the Ram Navami rally saying, ‘Angar hai hum, Toofan hai hum. Sunlo re sunlo. Pakistani mulloh, Bharat se bhaganeh ayeh hai hum (We are fire, we are a storm. Listen up, listen well. Pakistani mullahs, we are here to drive you out of India),” while his old song “Baap toh baap rehenga“, was played on the DJs along the procession route. The BJP MLA has done the same in the past as well.
