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Amid festive fervour, anxiety grips Ayodhya
Amid festive fervour and an impending Supreme Court’s verdict on Ram Janmabhoomi –Babri Masjid any time before November 17 spawning large-scale media attention,
Amid festive fervour and an impending Supreme Court’s verdict on Ram Janmabhoomi –Babri Masjid any time before November 17 spawning large-scale media attention, Ayodhya is in the grip of a palpable anxiety that not many are talking about.
Presence of thousands of para-military force personnel is another indication of the sensitivities involved.
Locals, especially Muslims, look more tense than others but are somewhat assured that there will be no repeat of the mob frenzy that this small town had witnessed after the demolition of Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992.
In Muslim localities, there is only one discussion and that is about the Supreme Court’s verdict on the Ayodhya title suit.
Jamal Ali, 35, of Alamganj Katra is worried. “If the court’s verdict is in favour of Ram Mandir then I think everything will be fine here. But in case, the verdict is opposite then we don’t know what will happen,” says Ali adding, “With so much security, I am somewhat confident that there will be no violence here.”
“I hope Ayodhya remains peaceful. We do not want a repetition of December 6, 1992 events in Ayodhya,” says Abbas Qureshi, 49, of Mughalpura colony.
A resident of Sayyed Wada locality, Salam Haider, 23, wants Babri Masjid to be rebuilt in Ayodhya but not at the cost of peace and communal harmony. “It is better for us that Ayodhya remains peaceful and Ram Mandir is constructed,” he adds.
Iqbal Ansari, one of the litigants in the Ram Janmabhoomi–Babri Masjid dispute, is also anxious but not worried. “Anxiety and apprehension is normal for any Muslim living in Ayodhya when the Supreme Court is about to deliver verdict in the Ayodhya case. But I am confident that Ayodhya will remain peaceful. Both the Centre and the state government have ensured complete safety for the Muslims this time,” says Ansari.
Radhey Shyam, 47, who has come from adjoining Ambedkar Nagar district to pay obeisance to Ram Lalla at the makeshift temple, is apprehensive that after the court’s verdict there might be some trouble.
“Who knows what will happen after the court’s verdict?” says he adding, “There might be some problem resulting in a ban on visitors to Ram Mandir after the court’s verdict. Therefore, I wanted to visit the deity before the court’s verdict is announced.”
MILLIONS IN AYODHYA
Festive fervor that started with the ‘Chaudah Koshi Parikrama’ on Tuesday last, will continue in Ayodhya till the Kartik Purnima (November 12) when over a million people are expected to be in this small town.
Even after completion two Parikramas, around five lakh pilgrims were present in Ayodhya on Friday.
From majestic Ram Ki Paidi ghat on the banks of the Saryu to the narrow lanes of Ayodhya, pilgrims could be seen everywhere. Hundreds of temples dotting this newly constituted district have now become resting place for devotees, who are free now after completing the ‘Paanch Koshi Parikrama’ (November 7-8).
Sitting at the stairs of Ram Ki Paidi, septuagenarian Kanti Devi, who sells flowers and other puja material on the ghat, sees economics and boom if Ram Mandir comes up in Ayodhya. She says, “If Ram Mandir is constructed then more people will come to Ayodhya. Then I will get more customers.”
Devotees coming to Ayodhya are also making it a point to pay obeisance to Ram Lalla at the makeshift temple.
The makeshift Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya has witnessed a 12-fold increase in the number of pilgrims. As against the average of 3000 visitors daily, around 36,000 people visited the makeshift temple on Thursday, according to the police control room near the makeshift temple.
“After completing Panch Koshi Parikrama I decided to pay obeisance to Ram Lalla (at makeshift temple). Your visit to this holy town is considered incomplete if you do not seek blessings of Ram Lalla,” says Manoj Chaurasia, who is in his 40s, from Bahraich district.
And for the cops manning the streets of Ayodhya, security is a big concern.
“Through public address systems regular announcements are being made to apprise people about temple (Ram mandir and Hanuman Garhi) timings. All necessary announcements are also being made to guide people,” said Ashutosh Pandey, additional director general of police, who is made incharge of security in Ayodhya.
