Canadian Parvasi Issue 15 November 2019

The International News Weekly Edit
06
November 15, 2019 | Toronto
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Hasty Move
President’s rule in Maharashtra
too soon, Sena should be given
more time to form coalition
Maharashtra took a dramatic turn on
Tuesday with governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari
imposing President’s rule. After BJP and
Shiv Sena failed to deliver on a power-sharing
arrangement, the latter was given a bare 24
hours to put together a viable alliance with
NCP and Congress. While talks between the
three parties did take place, the Sena requested
more time from the governor which was
denied. Next, it was NCP’s turn to request for
time. But governor Koshyari appears to have
convinced himself that government formation
isn’t possible in the current scenario.
If a stable coalition between Shiv Sena,
NCP and Congress is to form, this will require
some time to hammer together a power sharing
formula and a common minimum programme.
Koshyari’s giving minimum time to
both Sena and NCP to cobble together such a
coalition – before precipitately declaring President’s
rule – will be seen as an attempt to preclude
precisely that. Not surprisingly, Sena
has approached the Supreme Court against
the governor’s move.
More broadly speaking, the standard criticism
of such a diverse coalition as the Sena
is seeking to form now is that it is a ‘khichdi’
one that is bound to be inherently unstable.
However, it is by no means clear that an absolute
majority for a single party – or a coalition
where one party is clearly dominant – always
delivers superior results. In India this often
creates a top-down, centralised style of governance
– one that BJP in its current avatar also
seems to favour.
This kind of government has been touted
as decisive and action-oriented, and that may
indeed be true in some instances. Take, for
example, the quick reactions to provocations
from Pakistan at the level of the central government.
In other areas, for example in complex
arenas such as the economy and development,
a top-down model can stall initiative or
decision making at the grassroots, as well as
lead to a talent deficit in administration. In a
vast, complex and diverse polity such as India
power sharing arrangements may work better,
as long as they can work out a suitable coalition
dharma that ensures stability. Which
is why if Sena, NCP and Congress do indeed
eventually form the government in Maharashtra
they would do well to thrash out all important
issues beforehand, including the post of
chief minister. TNN
Momentous Judgment
On Ayodhya
SC’s adjudication of Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri
Masjid dispute represents a new dawn for India
Ravi Shankar Prasad
Lord Ram is also known
as Maryada Purushottam.
Dignity and ethics are
central to his conduct and
philosophy. His story for
the last thousands of years
continues to animate and
inspire the psyche of ordinary
Indians and remains
a proud narrative of our
civilisational, cultural and
spiritual heritage.
It was only fitting and
appropriate that the long
pending dispute for last
hundreds of years about
his place of birth “Ram Janmabhoomi”
at Ayodhya,
was finally settled by the Supreme
Court after an elaborate
hearing of more than
40 days by a unanimous
verdict of five judges. An issue
which was contentious,
full of competing claims and
interests many times giving
rise to conflicts and hostility,
could be resolved in a
perfectly lawful manner
consistent with the Maryada
of our constitutional
polity.
It is equally reassuring
that the entire country
has accepted this judgment.
There is no discord
or hostility on the ground
and a rare amity, brotherhood
and understanding
has been witnessed. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi as
a leader deserves full praise
for his appeal which played
a cardinal role in this amity
as also the requisite administrative
arrangement.
It is indeed a new dawn for
India.
There were basically
four suits. One filed by a
worshipper Gopal Singh
Visharad, second by Nirmohi
Akhara, third by UP
Sunni Central Waqf Board
and fourth by the deity itself
“Ram Lalla Virajman”,
who claimed a declaration
of title to the disputed site
coupled with injunctive
relief. The Allahabad high
court gave relief to the Hindus
with the right to pray
in the main area and also
allotting it to them. It further
proceeded to partition
the disputed area one-third
each to Hindus, Nirmohi
Akhara and Muslims.
The judgment of the Allahabad
HC was challenged
in the Supreme Court,
which led to the decision of
the Supreme Court. There
was voluminous evidence
on record – both oral and
documentary – consisting
of thousands of pages.
The Supreme Court in the
judgment elaborately considered
the interplay of all
these evidences. It would
only be appropriate to recall
some of these.
Joseph Tieffenthaler
was a Jesuit missionary
who visited India in 1740.
He notes the sacred character
of Ayodhya, which he
called Adjudea. In particular,
he mentions a “Bedi”
– a cradle – where Beschan
(Vishnu) was born in the
form of Ram. Alexander
Cunningham, director general
of Archaeological Survey
of India, refers to Ayodhya
in his 1862 report as the
birthplace of Lord Ram. P
Carnegie, commissioner
and settlement officer of
Faizabad, mentions in his
1870 report that “Ajudhia is
to Hindus what Mecca is to
Mohammedans”.
The court concluded
vide para 786 that travelogues
of foreigners provide
a detailed account both of
the faith and belief of Hindus
based on the sanctity
which they ascribe to the
birthplace of Lord Ram
and to the actual worship
by Hindus of the Janm Sthan.
Very significantly, the
court further noted that for
a period of 325 years from
the date of the construction
of the mosque until installation
of a grill wall by the
British, no evidence has
been adduced by the Muslims
to establish the exercise
of possessory control
over the disputed site.
The court held that
the oral and documentary
evidence shows that the
devotees of Lord Ram hold
a genuine longstanding and
profound belief in the religious
merit attained by offering
prayer to Lord Ram
at the site they believe to
be his birthplace. Significantly
the court mentioned
the acknowledgments by
Muslim witnesses about the
presence of Hindu religious
symbols like Varah, Jai-Vijay
and Garud outside the
threedome structure. The
court further held, “They
are suggestive not merely
of the existence of faith and
belief but of actual worship
down the centuries.” Quite
clearly, what was brought
down was not just brick and
mortar but a vibrant and
active symbol and place of
worship for millions of Hindus
through centuries.
While decreeing the
suit in favour of Ram Lalla
plaintiff of the Hindus in
substance, the court also decided
to provide restitution
to the Muslim community
by directing the government
to allocate five acres
of land to the Sunni Waqf
Board. The central government
has been directed to
formulate a scheme envisaging
the setting up of a
trust for the management
as also construction of a
temple. It has also been given
the liberty to hand over
the rest of the acquired land
for development in terms of
the scheme. The order of the
Allahabad HC was set aside
and the suit of Nirmohi
Akhara was dismissed.
Significantly the court
observed the practice of
religion, Islam being no exception,
varies according to
the cultural and social context.
Cultural assimilation
is a significant factor which
shaped the manner in
which religion is practised,
because cultural assimilation
cannot be construed as
a feature destructive of religious
doctrine. Surely the
heritage of Kabir, Rahim
and Raskhan stands vindicated
today.
For me it was an honour
and privilege to argue
this case on behalf of Ram
Lalla and Hindus in the Allahabad
HC.
Source Credit: This article
was first published in The Times
of India. The writer is Union
Minister for Law & Justice,
Communications and Electronics
& IT
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