Part 19: Revolution and counter revolution in modern India

Waman Meshram, National President, Bharat Mukti Morcha

Mandal versus anti-mandal agitations

In 1947 when Prime Minister was from Congress Ram idol was placed in Babri Masjid. That time Govind Vallabh Pant was India’s home minister. He was a lawyer, his son also qualified himself as lawyer. His son said “dad, I will practice law separately.” His father said, “No problem, there are files here pick any of them you want.” So he picked up the file of milkman from the table. His father had kept this matter with him for 4-5 years, his son picked up this file and within 6 months got the result and declared milkman not guilty of the accusations leveled against him and freed milkman. After this he returned home and said to his father “Dad that case of milkman that you had kept under consideration for 5 years and I got milkman declared free within 6 months.” His father was an experienced man. He said “Son, it is good that you have won the case but for the 5 years that milkman used to supply milk to us for free and he is innocent. That’s why from tomorrow he will not supply milk to us for free.” Those who want to drink milk and relish its cream had to keep such cases pending. Congress kept the idol of Ram Lalla in Babri Masjid, and kept this matter pending so that it can relish its cream be continuously so that other people will keep on beating Muslims and Congress will keep on giving assurances of security and take their votes.

This cow is not just that provide milk but also cream that’s why they did not solve this problem. R.S.S and Vishwa Hindu Parishad used the issue of Ram Janmabhoomi – Babri Masjid issue for some other purpose. They used this issue to end mandal commission agitation and started the agitation of Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri masjid agitation. In 1981 Mandal commission report was ready but congress kept it suppressed. Indira Gandhi did not allow even a discussion to take place on it in Parliament and Jawaharlal Nehru also did not allow any discussion to take place on Kalelkar commission report. Indira Gandhi also refused discussion on Mandal commission report. That time backward classes was getting awakened in Northen India. With this awakening if backward classes were to get socially awakened then the burden of forward class Brahmins would have been further increased as backward classes would have refused to carry burden of Brahmins. Backward classes would have lined up and stood against Brahmins, with this social revolution would have come about.

After calculating this risk they began agitation of Ram Janmabhoomi – Babri masjid dispute.  Backward classes people who believed in Ram plunged into this agitation instead of carrying forward Mandal Commission agitation, because they were devotees of Ram. Backward class people involved in Ram Janmabhoomi to such a big extend that there were no people to participate in Mandal commission agitation. In Delhi there was a leader of backward class named Choudhary Brahmaprakash (Ex-Chief Minister). He had formed an organization called ‘National union for backward classes’. He organized a morcha of backward classes in Delhi and he gave slogan “Backward class slogan, 90% share ours!”

One journalist was also walking in this Morcha, he said to Chaudhary Sahab “Your slogan in morcha is excellent but there is one thing missing.”  He asked “What is missing?” Then journalist replied “The people giving slogans in Morcha are not 90 in numbers.” Chudhary  then said in reply “how will they be 90? They have gone in the agitation of Ram Janma bhoomi – Babri masjid agiation. How will they come here?” Ram Janma bhoomi – Babri masjid agitation was started to end Mandal Commission agitation and to deny rights to backward classes. Because of this, when V.P Singh enforced Mandal commission , then BJP who were supporting V.P.Singh government withdrew its support.

After wards this decision on Mandal commission was challenged in Supreme Court in which 31 lawyers were fighting against the decision to implement Mandal commission and no lawyer was ready to fight in defense of Mandal commission. Then Lalu Prasad Yadav came to Delhi from Patna. He met many Brahmins and offered them higher fees to fight in defense of Mandal commission, but none of the constitutional expert agreed. Finally Lalu went to Ram Jethamalani and appealed to him to fight in defense of Mandal Commission.

Jethmalani said “I am a criminal expert, and not civil expert, and this is a civil matter.” Lalu Prasad said “no body is ready to fight, that’s why you have to fight.” Criminla expert had to fight civil matter. This case was decided on 16 November 1992.  Supreme Court decided in favor of Mandal commission but enforced the conspiracy of criminal layers upon backward class people. What is this creamy layer? Those whose annual income is 2 lakh rupees they will not get reservation. Backward class boys who were getting educated will not get education and those boys of backward classes who are not getting education will get education. This means that all the juice of mango is sucked up and seed is pushed into the mouth of backward classes. This conspiracy of criminal layer was enforced on backward classes. In order to prevent backward classes from getting to know this conspiracy Babri masjid was demolished on 6^th December 1992. Babri masjid was not demolished to oppose Muslim.

For 150 years no one was praying namaz in this Masjid. If you go near Faizabad and Ayodhya then you will realize that there are 14 temples there and devotees of each of these temple claim that Ram was born at a place where their temple is existing. But people of RSS and Vishwa Hindu Parishad are so great that they say that Ram was not born where temples are erected but he was born in Masjid. You can spoil the name of Ram but not to such extend by claiming that he was born in the house of Muslim.

The game that RSS and Vishwa Hindu Parishad played in Babri masjid, for this purpose the masjid that they chose, in that masjid no one had prayed namaz for past 10 years. This is the reason this issue was not against muslims, this issue was about ending rights of backward classes that were about to get them if the Mandal commission was enforced as it was. This is so if the Mandal commission was enforced then backward classes people would have got representation in administration. If they had to get this representation than in the times to come it would have seriously affected power structure and political power. In order to avoid this Congress carried on the agitation of Babri masjid demolition.

Both were opponents of Mandal commission. When Mandal commission report was declared in the Parliament that time Rajiv Gandhi did not know the art of public speech, but Rajiv Gandhi spoke for two and half hours, and members of Parliament tell that in those two and half hours Rajiv Gandhi drank water four times. That’s why it can be understood that Congress and BJP in combination with other started the agitation of Ram Janma Bhoomi – Babri masjid. When Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s ekta yatra had reached border of Delhi that time Indira Gandhi was Prime Minister, she went to welcome the Ekta Yatra of Vishwa Hindu Parishad.