Sangh Parivar Uses Ram Navmi to Incite Violence

This year, the Hindu festival of Ram Navmi was brazenly used by various outfits of the Sangh Parivar – BJP, VHP, Bajrang Dal and others – to create communal polarization. Armed processions of Sangh Parivar fronts, often named as local puja or celebration committee, insisted on taking out rowdy processions, shouting anti-Muslim slogans, threatening terrorized residents, clashing with police and ever so often ending up with a clash. This was seen on a large scale in West Bengal, where the ruling Trinamool Congress succumbed to the pressure and itself took out similar processions. In Bihar these events turned into conflagarations in Bhagalpur and Aurangabad, with tension in several other districts. In several parts of UP, Rajasthan and Maharashtra too similar reports have emerged though no big outbursts of violence occurred.

In areas of Bengal armed processions of BJP and VHP carders were seen shouting slogans and trying to create trouble, though most of these processions did not have any permission from the administration. The incidents which followed lead to stone pelting and a scuffle between Bajrang dal cadres and police claimed the life of a local person in Purulia district. One day after this clash, another clash took place in Raniganj, Burdwan District in which another person was killed, 5 police men injured and many shops were burnt after a Ramnavmi procession was taken out through a Muslim dominated area. Police has claimed that tension started when some provocative slogans were raised which were objected by the locals leading to stone pelting from both sides. Other incidents were reported from 24-Parganas district and Murshidbad district where people carrying saffron flags and arms tore down freedom fighter and former education minister Maulana Abdul Kalam’s statue, apart from vandalizing property.

In Bihar major incidents of communal clashes and violence took place in Aurangabad and Bhagalpur districts. In Aurangabad district it is reported that around 20 shops belonging to a particular community were torched by rioters after clashes broke out in a similar manner after a Ramnavmi bike rally was being taken out through a Muslim dominated area. Curfew was imposed in the district on 26 March after the incident. Apart from Aurangabad other districts of Bihar like Gaya ,Siwan and Kiamur also reported communal tension due to provocative processions on Ram Navmi.

Earlier, on the Hindu new year day on 18 March, a procession led by the son of a Union Minister (Ashwini Kumar Choubey) in Bhagalpur, Bihar, raised provocative slogans triggering off rioting in the city. The minister’s son has yet to be arrested by the police although he is named in the FIR.

Ruling parties in the two neighbouring states - Trinamool Congress in Bengal and Nitish Kumar’s JDU in Bihar – seem to be playing a very similar game in relation to these overt communal strategy of the Sangh Parivar. This is notable because while JDU is an ally of the BJP, Trinamool is positioning itself in opposition to it. Both have been claiming that the government will take strict action on these incidents. But in reality both are trying to play the same Hindutva card which BJP is considered an expert on.

In many areas of Bengal, TMC cadre along with the BJP and Sangh cadre were seen taking out Ram Navmi procession in areas where tension between communities exists. It seems very clear what the BJP and RSS is trying to do in the name of Ram Navmi . The Hindu festival which has been traditionally considered a festival of joy is being converted into a festival for asserting the communal politics of the Sangh. Ramnavmi was never a major cultural phenomenon in Bengal until a few years back. The RSS, in order to penetrate in Bengal, has been pushing it to influence Bengali Hindus in order to consolidate them behinditself on religious lines. This specific tactic of taking out armed processions is itself a new phenomenon and it is very clear what message they are trying to push. This dangerous practice of taking out rallies from Muslim dominated area and shouting provocative slogans has been a tactic which can been seen all over the Hindi belt in recent times and now in Bengal too.

In the past, TMC strategy was to appease the Muslim extremists by giving patronage to leaders of Jamat-ul-Mujahidin from Bangladesh and giving grants to Imams. But with the rising strength of BJP, the strategy is not only to go soft towards the Hindutva extremists  but also join hands with them like it was seen in the Ramnavmi procession being taken out along with them. Though Mamata Banerjee still seems to be paying lip service to the secular cause by saying those who have created ruckus won’t be spared and armed Ramnavmi processions were not given permissions but it is clear by their actions that this is not the case.

A very similar story is being scripted in Bihar too where Nitish Kumar the supposedly ‘secular’ CM is not taking any action against these rallies.

Talking to Newsclick the Bihar state Secretary of CPI(M) said “These type of armed rallies on Ramnavmi were never seen  in Bihar before. This is being done deliberately to escalate tension between the communities. In Bhagalpur the Union Minister Ashwini Kumar Chaubey‘s son started a communal riot in a very similar fashion one week ago. Minister Chaubey himself claimed that he is a proud of what his son did. Even after this open assertion his son has not being arrested till now. Also it is clear what Nitish Kumar’s politics is: his government has made the same person the DGP of Bihar who was the SP of Bhagalpur when the infamous Bhagalpur massacre of 1989 happened.”