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"The disputed land - Ayodhya"

I happened to meet Mr.Balraj Upadhyay (63) & Mr.Tabrez Farooqui (64) at a restaurant in Kurla. What made me to interact with them was the language they were using to communicate with each other. Balraj was speaking in one of the purest form on Hindi & likewise, Tabrez was using the best of Urdu. I was amazed to hear that they are friends for more than 50 years. Balraj, a Brahmin by caste & a Retd. Mechanical Engineer by profession whereas Tabrez is an Urdu writer & at times preaches Islam to the youth. They both looked simple & down-to-earth & were enjoying their tea until I interfered. I asked them if I could join, a straight look on their face followed by a smile which I presumed as an acknowledgement. I don't generally prefer to disturb anyone's privacy however the situation over here was different. It was raining & I couldn't find a place to hide. Helplessly, I entered this restaurant to grab a cup of coffee however couldn't find a place to sit until I saw these two gentlemen. I know it's not ethical to listen to someone's conversation but I couldn't resist myself from getting into the discussion when I heard the topic, "The disputed land - Ayodhya".

To my knowledge from the news & print media, the day, 6th Dec 1992 is know as the Black Friday in the history of India. Hindus of the country wants Ram Mandir as it’s the birth place of deity Ram & as per them, there was one before which was demolished/modified by a Mughal king (Babar) during his tenure. Muslims claim there was Babri Masjid since always & since it was demolished in 1992 by some Hindu extremists, they want to reconstruct Masjid only at that very place. It’s been 24 years; the disputed land is still hot topic of the country & especially in the world of politics & media to get votes & TRPs.

When I asked Balraj & Tabrez about their city of residence, they said "Ayodhya". I was set back when I heard about the 50 years old friendship of a Brahmin & a Muslim that too from a place like Ayodhya! This was one of the most important topic for me & I had a pile of questions for them. “I really admire the bond of friendship that you both share especially when you come from two different communities & that too from the land of dispute”. With a blank expression on both their faces, Tabrez asked me introduce myself which I did. In a mild voice, he asked me to elaborate the word "disputed land of Ayodhya" which I used in my sentence. I was wondering if he’s pretending to be dumb or he actually is! Out of curiosity I asked them both about the issue back in their city. Balraj responded, ‘what issue? which came as a surprise to me. Imagine you are meeting two senior citizens from “Ayodhya” who are asking you about the Ram Mandir / Babri Masjid issue, how would you react? Nevertheless, I told him everything that I knew about that topic. By the end of their response to my question, I had a totally different image about this topic.

“For how long you have been staying in Mumbai Irshad?” & there came a question from the engineer. ‘Since birth & I’m 31 now’. ‘Have you ever visited UP & to be precise, Ayodhya’? ‘No!’ I exclaimed. ‘We could have answered your question in detail however we are running out of time so will try & make it short, yet it would clear all your doubts’. “Do you know that Babri Masjid is also known as Masjid-e-Janmisthan? As a matter of fact, there was a time when both the communities used to worship their respective God at the same time & at the same place. It was the British who had put up a railing between the two areas to prevent any dispute. But the objective was not to prevent but to create communal differences”. I was taken by surprise after listening to Balraj. 

Now Tabrez continued from where Balraj left. “We are almost 65 years old now & have seen many changes in our fate of politics. Now, even the chameleons are committing suicide because now humans are changing colors better than them. We, the people of Ayodhya are least bothered about this topic. We have seen the inhuman act in the year 1992 which involved none of us (Ayodhyaites). That day is indeed called as a Black Friday in the world's history. It wasn’t done by any human but the devil chose his best to execute this massacre. They came, they destructed & they left & what was left behind was hatred & negativity. No one in the country has any idea what we had gone through after that incident. We almost starved for months due to lack of supply of everything. No one came to feed us, to see if we are okay, to help the needy, neither the government nor the mob. We helped each other to stand on our feet again. We, the people of Ayodhya didn’t paid attention to our neighbor’s religion but focused on each other’s need as that was the only need of the hour. Hindus of the country wants a Ram Mandir as they call it Ram Janmbhumi & Muslims of the nation wants Babri Masjid as the extremist have demolished it but no one asked the Ayodhyaites, what they want! They really believe that Ram or Allah would come at a place where there is bloodshed all over? How can you even call yourself a Hindu or a Muslim when you have no regard for humanity?” I wanted to differ but couldn’t as every word of these two aristocrats was true. Balraj continued, “Today, people like you are looking at our friendship with raised eyebrows whereas before the incident, it was very common. No one must have told you that even today in our city, Hindu woman takes care of a Muslim family out of humanity, friendship & neighborhood as the only woman in that family is suffering from cancer. A Muslim family takes care of a Hindu’s child in the absence of the only father as he goes to work. There are multiple examples like this back there. You’ll only be able to see the other side of the coin when you visit Ayodhya! You think we really care about that disputed land of Ayodhya? Construct whatever you want but please don’t make it a topic of debate, vote bank & TRPs.”

With a sigh in Balraj’s voice & depressed expressions on Tabrez’s face, I could sense their pain & hence didn’t discuss the topic any further. “You are en educated man & we need people like you to make this country a better place. If the youth opposes such actions, the handful of people who are trying to bring the country down with these kind of activities will be washed out”. Both of them were about to leave. I thought of asking them dinner as a sign of gratuity from a Mumbaikar but before I could, Tabrez said the last sentence & I was numb. “There’s a sense of hatred & negativity in the air of all these metro cities. Try & visit my land, ‘the land of dispute’ as you say it & you will know the true meaning of humanity”.

I was speechless to say anything as I saw them walking out of the restaurant. Tabrez last statement before leaving was, "Half truth is more poisonous than a lie!" Their message was clear, there are always two sides of a coin. Unwillingly, we become judgmental about something by just looking/hearing the news. Media is a pimp; politics is the red light area & politicians are… Looks can be deceptive!