Kaanth yatra: VHP threat thwarted but no guarantee of peace yet

Lucknow: Taking no chances of a possible confrontation a day before the planned protests by Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress, the UP administration on Friday prevented Sadhvi Prachi, a regional leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, from reaching Kaanth in Moradabad district to conduct a religious ceremony at a Shiva temple there.

Friday was especially a day of concern in view of the fact that being the last Friday of Ramzan, the Alvida namaz is performed by Muslims on this day, and a large number of kawariyas were expected to reach Kaanth Shiva temple to offer holy Ganga water. The situation, according to officials, had the potential of turning ugly if the temple ceremony was allowed to take place.

This temple in Akbarpur Chendri village in Kaanth was at the core of the dispute in June when members of one community had objected to a loudspeaker in the temple premises. The local police had reportedly forced entry into the temple and removed the loudspeaker, and in the ensuing melee several persons including women devotees, were injured. Most of the devotees at this temple belong to the Jatav Dalit community.

Subsequently, the BJP had called for a mahapanchayat over the issue organised a massive protest on July 4 in which miscreants had blocked rail tracks and in a clash with the police the Moradabad district magistrate was injured.

The situation in Kaanth could be exploited to ensure communal polarisation for all parties before the by-elections to several Assembly and one Lok Sabha seat in the state. For the newly-energised BJP it has emerged as yet another opportunity for creating the impression that the state administration and police are acting partially in favour of one community, and for the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, it is an opportunity to come out on streets to put a show of protest to counter both SP and BJP.

Sadhvi Prachi, state convenor of the Sadhvi Shakti Parishad, the women’s wing of the VHP, had left Hardwar on Friday morning and was arrested by police in Bijnore district and sent back to Hardwar. She had undertaken a maun vrat (fast of silence) in Hardwar and had vowed to break this fast with the jalabhishek programme in Kaanth on Friday. She had been demanding that loudspeakers removed by police from the Kaanth temple in June end be reinstalled. However, reports said she was stopped by police at Bhaguala in Bijnore district and forced to return to Hardwar. She told mediapersons there that she will “continue her fight” for reinstallation of the loudspeakers as it was a matter of “self respect for Hindus.”

The Moradabad district administration had, however, termed the jalabhishek it as a “new tradition” and not granted permission to allow it. Prohibitory orders have been imposed by the district administration in Kaanth area and security personnel have been deployed in large numbers to avoid any untoward incident.

However, the main showdown that has put the Moradabad district administration on its toes is slated for Saturday (which is today), when the BJP will take out a protest march to demand action against errant policemen and registration of FIR against Moradabad SSP for allegedly targeting BJP workers, and the Congress will take out a march urging the people to maintain peace and communal harmony.

State BJP president Laxmikant Bajpai says the party march in Kaanth on 26 July was only to demand action against the SSP and nothing else, the Congress march on 26 July is the first public show of protest by the party since May and it is expected that the UPCC president Nirmal Khatri, in charge of party affairs in the state Madhusudan Mistry, leader of the Congress Legislature Party Pradip Mathur and other party leaders will take part in the march.

The ruling Samajwadi Party has termed the 26 July programmes as an attempt by the two parties to create disorder in the state and to defame the Akhilesh Yadav government.