NEW DELHI: Muslim leaders from different organisations on Monday lent their support to Dalits and demanded that the temple of renowned Bhakti poet and seer Sant Ravidas in the Tughlaqabad area be restored at the earliest. The temple was razed on the order of the Supreme Court. The groups said they would take out a joint peaceful protest on September 15 if the government does not listen to their demands.
The temple was demolished by Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on August 10. Representatives of different Mulsim organisations, including All India Muslim Personal Law Board and Anjuman-E-Haideri, said the move is in solidarity with the Dalits and also the Bhim Army. They demanded that Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad, who was arrested in connection with protests over the temple’s demolition last month, be released and the charges against him and others detained dropped.
The seer has scores of followers, especially Dalits, across north Indian states. Azad, along with a smattering of his Dalit acolytes, were arrested after protests over the razing of the temple in the national capital turned violent. Speaking at a press briefing in the city on Monday, Syed Bahadur Abbas Naqvi, general secretary, Anjuman-E-Haideri, said, “Muslims and Dalits are together on this issue. It is our demand that the temple be rebuilt at the site where it was razed. Azad and his supporters, who were arrested on false charges, should be released immediately.”
Mulana Fazlul Manan Shahi, the Imam of Teele Wali Masjid in Lucknow, said, “We feel the pain caused by the temple’s demolition as we went through a similar experience. We share the grief of our Dalit brothers. We will be there to rebuild the temple.”
‘Release Azad’
Demanding that the temple be rebuilt where it stood, leaders of Muslim groups also called for the immediate release of Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad