Mumbai: The fight for Ram janmabhoomi is not for a temple, but for the respect of the nation, said Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) international secretary general Champat Rai during the group’s first rally on the history of Ram janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, on April 8 at Thane.
Rai said the country has changed the names of cities, roads and bridges that reminded us of British rule.
Similarly, the Ram temple should be made to erase the memory of Mughal emperor Babar’s forceful capture of the temple and consequent conversion of it into a mosque, he added.
Rai added, “The issue of Ram temple is 490 years old, over which 75 battles were fought. There are over 5,000 temples in Ayodha, most of which are that of Lord Rama. A small temple called Ram janmabhoomi was destroyed by Babar in 1528. The Hindus then fought for 15 days and lost. Following this, Barbar constructed a structure similar to a mosque, though it was never an actual mosque.”
He said that the fight for the temple is to win the lost respect of the country back.
“The Somnath temple, which was demolished by Mahmud of Ghazni ,was remade by Sardar Patel. We want a similar fate for Ram janmabhoomi. In December 1947, a few Hindu youths went to the site at night and demolished some part of the mosque and said there is a temple by placing an idol. Till date, the same place is worshipped by people. The place is closed by the government over the communal disharmony over it. However, we want a proper temple rather than compromise on this,” Rai added.
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