Holy mess: Protests over Amarnath land justified?

SMOKE AND FIRE: Police stations were set of fire and vehicles were burnt across India.

      

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The holy pilgrimage of the Amarnath Yatra is snowballing into a political controversy. A nation-wide bandh called by the BJP and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad disrupted normal life in many parts of the country on Thursday - all to protest against the J&K government's decision not to finally transfer land to the Amarnath Shrine Board.

Four people were killed in Madhya Pradesh and many injured in Jammu after mobs go berserk in parts of Maharashtra and Punjab. Trains and traffic were stopped even as Madhya Pradesh emerged as the epicentre.

The question being debated on Face The Nation was: Is the VHP protest on the Amarnath issue justified? On the panel to discuss the issue was VHP International General Secretary, Pravin Togadia and President PDP, Mehbooba Mufti.

At the beginning of the discussion, 52 per cent people who voted in on the show said that the protest was justified, while 48 per cent said it was not.

Is A Violent Protest Correct?

Police stations have been set of fire, vehicles have been burnt, traffic and trains have been stopped, four people have died and one person has immolated himself - why is the VHP doing all this when the Yatra is going on perfectly well?

Togadia defended himself saying that it was the Kashmiri Muslims and political parties who tried to disrupt the Yatra. "They had demanded to know why there should be an Amarnath Yatra. Who are they to decide whether there should be an Amarnath Yatra or not? Then Hindus should decide whether there should be Haj."

"They attacked yatris, more than 200 yatris were injured. Why did they start this row? Kashmiri politicians also have no right to deny the structures that are coming up at the Amarnath shrine," he stated.

"If by High Court orders, forestland is being given to make a makeshift shelter for Amarnath yatris, what is the objection of Muslims? When after repeatedly asking them, the government has not given Hindus shelter, we protested democratically."

He said that there was no violence in Assam, Bihar, Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

"If there were one or two isolated incidents, then we apologise for the same. The bandh overall was very peaceful. You don't want Hindus to protest democratically and politically also? There should be emergency on Hinuds?" he asked.

Kashmiri Muslims Traditional Custodians of Yatra

Mehbooba Mufti said that the Kashmiri Muslims have been the traditional custodian of the yatra and the shrine since 1860. She said that she thought people like Praveen Togadia were very confused.

"Even in the worst of times in Kashmir, when Muslims were migrating to other states of India, the locals welcomed the yatris and looked after them. Never has a yatri ever been harmed by anyone here in all these years," she said.

She added that the former Governor of J&K and the Chairman of the Amarnath Shrine Board, General Sinha - who had asked for the forestland transfer - was a communal man. She said that he accused her party of giving land to Islamic universities, but that he failed to always mention the land they donated for Hindu universities like the Mata Vaishno Devi University.

She said that she was giving an assurance that the yatris are being taken of and that the yatra is going on well. She added that she would lay down her life to protect the safety of the yatris.

FINAL SMS POLL:

Is the VHP protest on the Amarnath issue justified?

Yes: 49 per cent

No: 51 per cent