The rhetoric was strong, the mobilisation by no means a failure, but at the end of the day, the Sangh Parivar-backed Saraswati puja at the disputed Bhojshala on the occasion of Basant Panchami passed off peacefully.The message, however, is clear. In the runup to the elections, Madhya Pradesh will witness the same rhetoric the Sangh Parivar used with good effect in Gujarat, even if it does not carry the same resonance here, and the Bhojshala will be used as a tool for political mobilisation much in the same way as the Ayodhya issue. Togadia sprinkles spices, crowd doesn’t simmer • If the restriction on worship by Hindus is not relaxed, I will turn Dhar into another Ayodhya (at a press conference) • Mandirs have been broken and turned into masjids here. In Dhar, worship of Saraswati is not allowed, is this Hindustan or Arabistan? • I am asked whether we demolished Babri masjid and I say yes, we on our own strength demolished the structure but it was not a mosque but an old Ram mandir we broke to make way for a new Ram mandir. VHP leader Praveen Togadia, the star attraction today, started off from where he had stopped in Gujarat, threatening to turn the Bhojshala into another Ayodhya if the administration does not relent on the restrictions on Hindus who are allowed to worship at the structure only once a year.His speech focused on the threat from terrorism and jehad, its connection with Pakistan and Musharraf. The overt references to Islam connecting with leaders — read Digvijay as most in the crowd did — who pander to the Muslims for votes and prevent the worship of Saraswati by Hindus in Dhar. Leaders, who do not implement POTA — again read Digvijay — in the war against jehad. The only way out is to vote such people out of power, he said.Earlier in the day, devotees had turned out in large numbers to worship at the structure. The Bhojshala is a protected monument under the ASI which currently is open for prayers by Muslims every Friday and worship by Hindus once a year on Basant Panchami. The security was elaborate with the RAF in control of the structure and the district police spread out through the town. Barricades had been set up 20 km outside town and few vehicles being allowed in were being searched and cleared. The Hindu Jagran Manch had made extensive efforts to mobilise crowds with a main rath yatra traversing the district over ten days and subsidiary yatras reaching out to every village. But the administration had made it clear that no trouble would be tolerated and a show of force today was clearly designed to prevent any untoward incident. There were also signs that the issue had not quite split the town into two with Muslims turning out to organise stalls offering free water to the devotees.The dharan samagam addressed by Togadia was held in the afternoon, more than a kilometre from the disputed shrine with most of the devotees heading their after having offered prayers at the shrine. Sadhvi Ritambhara, who was also expected, did not show up.
