No Man's Land

Even terrorist attacks do not have this kind of magnitude. A magnitude that is baffling, to say the least.

1993 Mumbai attacks - 257 killed
2006 Mumbai train attacks - 209 killed
2008 Taj attacks - 173 killed
Number of people killed due to the Ayodhya land dispute - a whopping 2000.

History tells us Babri Masjid was built in Ayodhya after Babar defeated the Hindu king and took over his kingdom, and Hindu groups claim there used to be a Ram temple at the same spot. People, we were not even a speck of dust when all of this happened! I understand Ayodhya is a holy place for Hindus, but let us face it, the Mughal kings destroyed lots of temples. It wouldn't be feasible for us to cry foul now, would it?

Back in 1885 when a certain Mahant Raghubar Ram moved the court to build a temple at the site, Judge Col. F.E.A. Chamier ruled as follows,

"....It is most unfortunate that a Masjid should have been built on land specially held sacred by the Hindus, but as that event occurred 356 years ago, it is too late now to agree with the grievances. ..." (Source - WIKI)

So why hurt the sentiments of a group which had nothing to do with the original sin? I really do not understand the fanaticism behind a piece of land. Will a God come down and heap praises on you if you kill fellow men in His name? No, you just go to jail, you morons! I might be treading on blasphemous waters here, there might have been a temple, a mosque, but hey - in the end it is a piece of land. Of course, I will not deny that there is a teeny tiny part of my Hindu upbringing that is curious about the outcome, but it is not earth shattering. If anything I am worried about how the verdict is going to affect everyday life; it is just noon in the office and we are shutting down shop already, precautionary measures in place.

Where there is something to gain, our politicians are not far behind. BJP and VHP took advantage of the sensitive site and demolished the mosque in 1992, thus winning the elections. Today on the 30th of September, 2010, the verdict on who the land belongs to is finally going to be out - and I am strongly for the court declaring the Babri Masjid site to be "No Man's Land". Like a colleague suggested, perhaps it could be converted into a tourist spot. "People, so this is that piece of land due to which 2000 people are dead."

And no, they can never come back.

We are a secular country; two of my closest friends are Muslim and Christian, and never ever, ever, has religion come between us. It is unthinkable. Folks, I really hope you do not lose your cool and lose friends for the sake of land that you might never even see in your lifetime. A piece of land that couldn't care less about who was standing on it. And if today Lord Ram and Prophet Mohammed were alive, I am sure they would've said the same thing.

Like Bill Maher said -

"We are a nation that is unenlightened because of religion. I do believe that. I think religion stops people from thinking. I think it justifies crazies."