The demolition of the Masjid Akhonji in New Delhi’s Mehrauli Forest is being presented as merely part of an anti-encroachment drive. Anti-encroachment demolitions have occurred before, and even in Pakistan mosques have been demolished, but only to the extent of their encroachment. However, the razing of the entire structure by bulldozer in the middle of the night, on the pretext of clearing all encroachments from the Mehrauli Forest reserve, indicates that the demolition is permanent. It should also preclude the construction of a mandir at the site, for that would constitute a fresh encroachment. The mosque was about 600 years old, which meant that it was built long before the Mehrauli Forest became a reserve. Such an old structure should have been preserved, even if it was not in use. The tragedy is that it was, not just as a mosque, but as a madressa and a graveyard. The demolition entailed the destruction of manuscripts of the Quran, as well as of many graves. It is perhaps noteworthy that this mosque was not famous one scheduled by the Sangh Parivar for destruction.
The court permission to allow Hindu worshippers into the Gyanvapi Mosque in Banaras, on the other hand, showed that the Babri Mosque model, where it is alleged that a mosque was built on top of a mandir site, is being used by the Parivar as well. The allegedly miraculous appearance of a Shivlingam in the mosque’s ablution area is the basis of this suit, and of the claim that the mosque was built on a mandir site.
It is almost as if there has been no pause for breath in the Parivar’s drive to wipe the whole of India free of any trace of Muslim presence. It seems that only old buildings are being torn down, but it is only a matter of time before there is a demolition of living beings. India has a record of taking best practices from Israel, and the present slaughter of Gazans should be seen as a lesson to India on how to tackle its Muslim population. It is perhaps too much to expect a world community to prevent India from destroying its own heritage along with an large proportion of its population, but it should ensure that valuable parts of world heritage, like the Taj Mahal, are not demolished by the Hindutva hordes because they are a reminder of when Muslims ruled India.
