NEW DELHI: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) May 27 changed its stand on the proposed forcible Occupation Ram Janmabhoomi land in Ayodhya and said that they would now be carried out “under a democratic framework.”
Addressing a press conference, the general secretary of the VHP, Mr. Ashok Singhal, said that the “Margadarshak Mandal” would be meeting in Delhi on July 14-15 to finalize the program of action in this regard.
Earlier, the VHP had declared that later this year its voluntaries would forcibly occupy the land and was even prepared for a confrontation with the government.
Singhal even said perhaps a situation may also anise which may make the launching of an agitation unnecessary.
Asked whether he considered the demolition of the mosque as an act within the democratic framework, Singhal said “yes” and a died that it was a functioning temple, is still a temple and will remain a temple, He said “it is our democratic right to demolish it and reconstruct it.”
Singhal charged the government with trying to break the unity of the religious leaders by setting up a trust for temple construction in Ayodhya. He said there could be no talks on the issue until the President made categorical announcement and decision that the temple will be constructed at the same site and “no Islamic center” would be established within the boundaries of Ayodhya.
Singhal also said that the center cannot be given unlimited time to sort out the temple issue. “There had not been much progress on the cases in the Supreme Court,” he said.
The VHP leader said that “sants” were of the opinion Mat the issue of the Ram temple was outside the ambit of the courts, He said there was pressure on the Shankaracharya of Sringeri from the Center to accept the new trust to be formed by it to construct the temple.
Article extracted from this publication >> June 10, 1994
