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| India-Pakistan |
| More VHP violence on the way... |
| 2002-03-14 |
Betcha that doesn't happen. The head cheeses only catch bullets by accident. It'll be the The Supreme Court verdict has made any kind of puja or other activity on the acquired land illegal. However, giving its own interpretation to the judgment, the VHP's working president, Ashok Singhal, said that the verdict had not gone against them. Singhal told journalists in Ayodhya on Wednesday that the verdict only referred to two plots of land and not to the entire portion of acquired land. "There was nothing in the court's verdict to suggest that a puja could not be conducted on the remaining land," he said. That's why they pay their mouthpieces big bucks, to find those little loopholes... Refuting Singhal's interpretation, the Supreme Court on Thursday afternoon swung back with a clarification that no puja could be performed on any part of the 67 acres around the disputed site. However, there are no restrictions on a puja being performed in any other part of the town, the apex court said. Ummm... Yeah. There's gotta be another loophole in there somewhere... VHP leaders have been confirming and then denying in recent days that they would respect the court verdict. But few in the country trust them given their track record. After all, the VHP and the activists of its fraternal organizations in the Sangh Parivar destroyed the mosque in 1992 despite a written assurance that they would not do so. "Hey! Trust us! We're holy men. We want nothing but the well-being of our faithful. You look really tired. Why don't you let me hold your wallet for you?" Some 10,000 police and paramilitary troops have fanned out around Ayodhya and Uttar Pradesh state in an attempt to prevent activists from converging on the site. Restrictions have been imposed on the entry of activists and religious leaders and security in the karyashalyas (the workshops where stone pillars are being carved) has been stepped up. 'Bout damned time the government took a strong stand... At least pretended to. Of course, there is a possibility, too, that the VHP will make another vague statement late on Thursday night assuring the authorities of its intention to respect the court verdict - and leave the religious leaders and activists to steer the action on Friday. Yeah. It's a pretty good possibility. The Biggies will stand around and look pious, and they'll let their For if things do slide out of control into violence, the VHP and its friends in government can then hide behind a fig leaf, saying that what happened was a spontaneous action of the masses. Probably they'll "deplore" the violence and death, and of course point out how it's all the government's fault for being too aggressive. Soon after the Supreme Court verdict, VHP president Hari Dalmia stated clearly that the religious leaders would determine the strategy the VHP adopts on Friday. What he did not say was that outfits such as the RJM and the religious leaders who will most likely march on Friday are controlled by the VHP. "Just ignore that man behind the curtain." |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |