New Delhi:
Mulayam Singh’s order to open fire on kar sevaks marching towards Ayodhya in 1990 was taken to uphold the Constitution and prevent a potential civil war, Samajwadi Party MP Sanatan Pandey said, days after UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath sought an apology from Akhilesh Yadav over the incident.
The Samajwadi Party MP, speaking to the reporters, accused the BJP of misleading the public for over three decades by continuously politicising the 1990 incident. The 16th century Babri mosque was demolished two years later, on December 6, 1992, by thousands of kar sevaks who believed it was built on the ruins of an ancient temple that marked the birthplace of Lord Ram in Ayodhya.
Flipping the script, Pandey questioned who is responsible for the alleged firing orders during recent mass agitations. The reference is to the alleged police brutality during the student-led protests in Delhi and across the country.
In Delhi, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge demanded that the BJP government at the Centre “apologise to the students and take strict action against those who ordered the use of batons and pellet guns to suppress the students’ voices” during the protests at Jantar Mantar over the NEET paper leak.
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In July, a police official was seen firing an AK-47 during the students’ protest in Bihar.
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“For 35 years, ever since 1991, they (BJP) have been criticising Mulayam Singh Yadav, claiming that he ordered firing on Ram devotees. They have used this narrative to mislead the public. But tell me, under their own rule, just recently, who ordered the firing on others? Whose government was in power in the state? Whose government was in power at the Centre? If Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) ordered the firing to protect the Constitution of India, then it was the absolutely correct course of action,” he said, defending the action against the kar sevaks.
READ | Mulayam Singh Justifies Police Firing On Karsevaks In 1990
It is important to note that the BJP government honoured Mulayam Singh Yadav, the late founder of the Samajwadi Party, with the Padma Vibhushan – the second-highest civilian honour after Bharat Ratna – in the field of public affairs in 2023.
READ | Watch: Akhilesh Yadav Accepts Padma Award On Behalf Of Father Mulayam Singh
He emphasised that during that time the disputed site (now Ram Temple) was supposed to be protected. The core responsibility to ensure nobody reached the site rested with the Centre and local authorities.
“At that time, the Indian Army had been deployed. The primary responsibility lay in ensuring that no one reached the disputed structure, referred to here as the Ram Mandir, which was already subject to a court-ordered stay. How did the individuals, the Ram Bhakts, manage to reach it? The responsibility for this also rested with the Central government, as well as with the local authorities tasked with maintaining law and order,” he said.
Pandey further argued that the action taken by the then-Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav prevented a catastrophic escalation that could have torn the nation’s social fabric apart.
“Had the order not been given to open fire, the mosque or the temple might have been destroyed; such an event could well have triggered a civil war in India, much like the destruction of temples that occurred in other countries. Therefore, the firing was ordered to protect the Constitution of India,” he said.
The controversy around firing on kar sevaks has resurfaced after the Samajwadi Party leader Pawan Pandey said Akhilesh Yadav will visit Ayodhya with his family on December 12 to offer prayers at the Hanuman Garhi temple and seek blessings at the Ram Mandir.
It will be Akhilesh Yadav’s first visit to the temple since its inauguration in January 2024, and the announcement has drawn sharp reactions from the ruling side over its timing as state elections are due early next year.
Addressing an event in Ayodhya, Yogi Adityanath said, “Please come, but first, make sure you apologise to the kar sevaks who were fired upon. You must express remorse.”
Recalling the decades of struggle during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, the Chief Minister emphasised the historic sacrifices of kar sevaks and saints, issuing a stern message to political critics who previously suppressed the movement.
“These people from the Samajwadi Party are rattled by the growing strength of Sanatan culture. If they visit Ayodhya, they should not only seek forgiveness from Lord Shri Ram by holding their own ears in a gesture of deep contrition, but also apologise to Sanatan culture itself for the rivers of blood that flowed in Ayodhya Dham, shed by unarmed kar sevaks, during the Samajwadi Party’s government,” Brajesh Pathak, UP Deputy Chief Minister, said.
