Protests were held countrywide marking the 25th anniversary of Babri Masjid demolition on 6 December. Demands for the punishment to the perpetrators were reiterated while pledges were taken to combat corporate-communal fascist forces.
In Delhi left parties organized a ‘Nyaay March’ against communal hatred and violence starting from Mandi house and culminating at Parliament Street. The march was addressed by comrades Kavita Krishnan, Sitaram Yechuri, D. Raja, Ramesh Parashar and others.
Protest marches and meetings were also held at Darbhanga, Bhagalpur,Nawada, Purnea, Madhubani, Betiya (Eastern Champaran), Arwal, and Muzaffarpur.
Programmes and protests were also organized at Ranchi, Giridih, Bagodar, Jamua, Birni, Rajdhanwar, Gandeya, Bengabad, Garhwa, Koderma, Hazaribagh and other places in Jharkhand. Protests were organized at Kolkata and Siliguri (West Bengal), Bhubaneshwar (Odisha), Eastern Godavari district and Yelleshwaram (AP), Guwahati (Assam), Bhilai and Raipur (Chhattisgarh), and various places in Uttar Pradesh.
Left Parties’ Convention in Patna
Six Left parties organized a joint convention in Patna on 6 December 2017 against communal hatred and frenzy and the rise in attacks on people’s rights. The convention was attended by thousands of Left activists from CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), SUCI(C), Forward Bloc and RSP. At the conclusion of the convention a Peace March against the communal poison being spread by Sanghi gangs in Phulwari and other districts in the State was taken out from Abhiyanta Bhavan to Dak Bungalow Chowk.
The Convention was presided over by CPI State Secretary Satyanarayan Singh, CPI(M) State Secretary Awadhesh Kumar, CPI(ML) State Secretary Kunal, SUCI(C) State Secretary Arun Kumar and Forward Bloc General Secretary Ashok Prasad. The convention began with floral tributes to Dr Ambedkar and a resolve to fulfill his dreams, after which a minute’s silence was observed for all the victims killed in communal riots till date.
The speakers included AIARLA National President Rameshwar Prasad, former CPI MLA and General Secretary of All India Khet Mazdoor Union Nagendra Nath Ojha, Sarvoday Sharma (CPM), TN Azad (Forward Bloc), Jabbar Alam (CPI), Dhirendra Jha (CPI(ML)), Arun Kumar (SUCI(C)), noted economist DM Diwakar, and IMA National VP PNP Pal. Satyanarayan Singh presented the keynote address and Dhirendra Jha read the political resolution. Other Left leaders, intellectuals and professionals were also present at the convention.
The speakers said that Dr Ambedkar was against Hindutva forces and Hindu Rashtra and had warned the country against them; but the Sanghi gang is today trying to hijack that very Dr Ambedkar. The Sanghi goons are attacking not only Muslims and minorities but also dalits, women, and intellectuals. The same forces who demolished the Babri Masjid in 1992 killed Kalburgi, Pansare, Dhabolkar and Gauri Lankesh; the same forces are responsible for the communal and caste terror in Dadri, Una, Jaipur, Haryana and other places; the same forces have the open protection of the Sangh and the governments. Their morale has been so boosted during the Modi government that they are attacking educational and scientific institutions, literature, culture, cinema, and all areas of creative expression and also issuing fatwas to cut noses and ears and burn people alive. There has been a spate of communal incidents after the BJP usurped power through the back door with Nitish’s collusion, and incidents of attacks on minority in the name of beef are now rife in the State. On the one hand the billionaires in the country are getting richer while on the other hand the country ranks an appalling low (100) on the hunger index. The politics of communal poison and pro-corporate anti-poor policies can be countered and defeated only by a strong and united communist movement.
Joint Left Programmes in Uttar Pradesh
Left parties jointly held various programmes on 6 December 2017 on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Babri demolition and Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Nirvana anniversary.
A joint dharna was organized at the Gandhi statue in GPO Park, Hazratganj, Lucknow. Activists from CPI, CPM, CPI (ML) and other Left organizations participated in the dharna. Speakers at the dharna said that the BJP and the Sangh gang are once again trying to cash in on the Ram Mandir issue in order to escalate communal polarization and benefit in the Gujarat Assembly election and the 2019 Lok Sabha election. The lapdog media is fully colluding in this and helping them. Through the dharna it was demanded that the accused in the Babri demolition should be punished and the Modi-Yogi governments should stop giving protection to the killers of Pehlu Khan, Umar Khan and Junaid.
Protests were also held at Kanpur, Moradabad and Gorakhpur. Left organizations defied the Sanghi gang and held a successful symposium at the Hindustani Academy in Allahabad. AISA took out a march from the Law Faculty at Allahabad University up to Kachheri Chowk. Marches were also taken out at Mau, Ballia, Lakhimpur Kheeri, Ghazipur, Gonda, Jalaun, Banda and Chahaniya (Chandauli). Symposiums were organized at Pilibhit and Bangarmau (Unnao). During several of the protests the demand for the release of Bhim Army convener Chandrashekhar was also made.
6 December Observed As Black Day in Jharkhand
5 Left Parties (CPI, CPM, CPI (ML), MCC, SUCI (C)) observed 6 December, the 25th anniversary of the Babri demolition, as Black Day and resolved to strengthen the struggle to protect the Constitution on the anniversary of Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Mahaparinirvana Day in Ranchi. After garlanding the Ambedkar statue a Justice March was taken out from Jaipalsingh Stadium which culminated in a meeting (Sankalp Sabha) at Albert Ekka Chowk. Leaders from all 5 Left Parties speaking on the occasion said that 25 years ago the BJP-RSS unleashed destruction and communal hatred and violence on the country and today they have ridden to unbridled power on the ‘Rath’ of communal polarization. Even after the Supreme Court identifying the destruction of the Babri Masjid as a well-planned conspiracy against the people of India and directing cases to be registered against Advani, Uma Bharti, MM Joshi et al, today there is a conspiracy to water down the entire crime and reduce it to a mere land dispute. They appealed to the people to strengthen the struggle to punish the guilty in the Babri demolition, end the attacks on democratic rights and the composite culture of India, end attacks on Muslims and minorities, punish killers of innocent Muslims, and make public the Liberhan Commission Report.
On 6 December protest marches, meetings and programmes were also held at Bagodar in Giridih, Jamua, Birni, Rajdhanwar, Dokidih, Bengabad, Garhwa, Jainagar in Koderma district, Hazaribgh, Ramgarh, Dhanbad and other places. Speakers at these protests condemned the Babri demolition, demanded punishment for the guilty, and resolved to protect the Constitution of India and work to fulfill the dreams of Babasaheb Ambedkar. They pointed out the failure of the Raghuvar government in Jharkhand on all fronts and demanded answers on issues like the killing of Imtiaz Alimuddin and the starvation death of Premni Kunwar.
Protest in Haryana
The CPI (ML) organized a dharna in front of the Mini Secretariat at Karnal on this day to protest against the politics of communal hatred and violence. Party State in-charge Com. Prem Singh Gehlawat said that the then opposition leaders Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar, Sadhvi Rithambhara, Vishnu Hari Dalmiya, Ram Vilas Vedanti, Mahant Nrtiya Gopal Das, Champak Rai Bansal, Baikunth Lal Prem and others were responsible for the demolition of the Babri Masjid on 6 December 1992. After 25 years, many of them are Ministers, Governors, or hold other important posts. All are roaming free. Our Party demands that they should be given the strictest punishment so that no one dares to commit such a crime in future. He said that we will continue to fight against this communal politics and continue to raise demands for employment for the youth of Haryana, guarantee of employment through MNREGA, payment of arrears to workers, guarantee of safety and security for women and dalits, purchase of sugar cane from farmers, implementation of Swaminathan Commission recommendations, purchase of all crops by the government at the fixed prices, ending the midnight raids by the electricity department in villages, registering of sharecroppers, auction of gramsabha agrarian land to the poor only, old age pension of minimum Rs 5,000 per month, an unemployment allowance of Rs 5,000 per month for unemployed youth. The dharna was also addressed by leaders, activists, and local people who expressed their views.
Protest programmes were also organized in Guntur and East Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh and other parts of the country.
