GUWAHATI: A students’ organisation in Assam “purified” a historical monument after it was allegedly defiled by volunteers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Last week, scores of the RSS volunteers were seen all over Kareng Ghar, shouting slogans like “Hindu-Hindu bhai-bhai” etc. They had congregated at the end of a “cleanliness drive”.
Their act irked the All Tai Ahom Students’ Union (ATASU) so much that it got the eighteenth century monument purified with the help of priests. The students’ body urged the RSS to refrain from sowing seeds of hatred and dividing people in the name of religion.
“Kareng Ghar is a secular place which they defiled. So, we had to purify it with the help of priests,” ATASU president Nitul Buragohain told Express.
Alleging that it was a virtual siege, similar to the one at the time of Babri Masjid demolition, he said the act of the RSS volunteers appeared as if they were there to capture the building. He asked the RSS to not forget that Kareng Ghar was a place, open to people belonging to all faiths, not exclusively Hindus.
“It was also a cultural aggression. By doing what they did, they demeaned people of other faiths. The RSS wants to make India a place only for the Hindus. We suspect that it has a similar agenda in Assam,” the ATASU president alleged.
The Congress also expressed deep concern over the act of the RSS volunteers. In a letter, Congress leader Debabrata Saikia urged Union Culture Minister Dr Mahesh Sharma “to take proper steps to protect the sanctity of the heritage site so that the people, who imperilled the monument with their unbecoming conduct, are taken to task”.
The Kareng Ghar (royal palace), which is also known as The Garhgaon Palace, is a symbol of Assam’s secular identity.
Located in Garhgaon, some 15 km from eastern Assam’s Sivasagar town, it is one of the grandest examples of Ahom architecture and a Centrally-protected monument. The Ahoms, who migrated from Thailand, had ruled Assam for over 600 years and were instrumental in building the greater Assam society.