A procession by a majority community into a minority neighbourhood, stone pelting by foolish residents, and the next day bulldozer retaliation by authorities, demolishing shops on the same street with the excuse of encroachments, spoiled the otherwise peaceful consecration of the Ram Mandir. Tit for tat, right? But when the tit is done by an eighty percent majority, it could have been done in a wiser way.
The ‘bulldozer retaliation technique’ did not start in Uttar Pradesh but started in Israel, where the Israelis decided to teach the Palestinians a lesson; every time there was an attack by a Palestinian whether a suicide bombing or firing, bulldozers tore into the Palestinian neighbourhood and tore down buildings.
The Israelis were happy, and only now realise the war they are fighting is against those who resented such bullying, and who are now involving the whole world in their battle. Yesterday’s bulldozers, today’s missiles, kidnappings, war and death! Such retaliation techniques send out a wrong message.
From childhood I have been fascinated by history books revealing the story of King Ram of Ayodhya, but what I loved most was the kind of ruler he was, an archetype of the Maryada Purushottam, the perfect follower of rules, honour and traditions. Much of India’s fascination for him and that of the world, stems from their faith in him as the ideal ruler. What does that mean? Ram represents the kind of ruler who put his people and his nation above everything else.
Which is why, we as a nation, from the day we installed a temple to Ram, need to show the world what it means. The world, war-torn and weary, is watching us. And if we want to make Ayodhya the capital of what Ram embodied, we need to start practising it right away. Bulldozer retaliation techniques, sloganeering to incite, and other harmful methods, though exciting and uplifting for the majority community, doesn’t serve the Ram Rajya purpose.
Modi’s speech, during the inauguration of the Mandir was tempered well, and came close to what Ram brought about as a ruler. Not our beliefs in Hinduism, nor Christianity, nor Mohammedanism, Sikhism or any ism should stand in the way of our ‘desh sarvopari’ or the nation above all else. That should be our slogan. That is what a Ram Rajya is all about, which will lift our country into what Ram created and is revered forever for doing so.
This message is not just for the authorities in Mira- Bhayandar, a suburb of Mumbai who used bulldozers to teach a lesson, but for all of us who belong to this beautiful land, whatever religion we follow, that we need to stop giving a wrong message, because a war-torn, weary world is searching for the right one…!
—Email: bobsbanter@gmail.com
