HYDERABAD: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has strongly criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent statement in Ayodhya that centuries old wounds were healing. He said the Supreme Court had made it clear that there was no evidence of a temple being demolished to construct the Babri Masjid.
Speaking at an event in Hyderabad, Owaisi asked what wounds the Prime Minister referred to. He said the only wound was the demolition of the Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992. He added that the event weakened the Constitution and the rule of law. He described December 6 as a Black Day in Indian history.
Owaisi compared the demolition to other dark moments such as the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and the violence against Sikhs in 1984. He said the Ram Janmabhoomi verdict was delivered on the basis of faith. He recalled that the judges had written that the Places of Worship Act formed a part of the Basic Structure of the Constitution. He added that a judge involved in the Ayodhya judgment later said in an interview that building a mosque after demolishing a temple was wrong, which he described as painful.
Owaisi said India belongs to all its people and does not have a state religion. He warned that claiming the country for one religion dishonours the sacrifices of all communities in the freedom struggle.
He raised concerns over the acquittal of the accused in the demolition case. He asked who carried out the demolition if all the accused were cleared of charges. He said the government did not file an appeal against the trial court’s decision.
