Tonk (Rajasthan) [India], December 4 (ANI): After a Congress delegation led by Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi was stopped en route to violence-hit Sambhal, Congress leader Sachin Pilot said that an atmosphere of tension is being created in Sambhal as BJP’s politics works on polarisation.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Pilot said,” Innocent people died in Sambhal…today Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi wanted to meet the families of those who died in Sambhal but they were stopped. An attempt is being made to create an atmosphere of tension there because the politics of BJP is based on polarisation and they keep trying to ignite things”.
Further talking about petitions filed in local courts claiming Hindu rights over Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal as well as Ajmer Sharif Dargah, Sachin Pilot referred to the Places of Worship Act 1991, which prohibits conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship.
Sachin Pilot said, “A law was passed in 1991 and that law was unanimously passed by the Parliament that all the religious places after the independence of the country will be kept as they are… whether it is the case of Sambhal or Ajmer, there are deliberately some forces in this country who want to divert the attention of the public from the issues of farmers, inflation, unemployment…”
“There is no end to such things if one starts digging into every house and temple to ascertain what’s beneath it as this country is so old,” he added further.
Following the visit, Rahul Gandhi criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after being stopped at the Ghazipur border in Ghaziabad on his way to violence-hit Sambhal. The Congress MP stated that visiting Sambhal was his constitutional duty and described the restrictions placed on him as unconstitutional.
In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi wrote in Hindi: “The police stopped us from going to Sambhal. As the Leader of the Opposition, it is my right and duty to go there. Yet I was stopped. I am willing to go alone, but even that was not allowed. This is against the Constitution. Why is the BJP afraid? Why is it using the police to conceal its failures? Why is it suppressing the message of truth and brotherhood?” The Congress leader also shared a video showing his interaction with a police officer.
The violence in Sambhal erupted on November 24 during an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) examination of a Mughal-era mosque. The clashes resulted in four fatalities and multiple injuries among police personnel and locals. The ASI survey was prompted by a petition filed in a local court, claiming the mosque was originally built on the site of a Harihar temple. (ANI)
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