The demolition continues to cast a shadow on politics and polity. It is also an event that no political party, except of course, the malignant Parivar, wants to talk about in case it is compelled to take positions that go against somebody's or the other's grain ... Babari Masjid and the politics of communalism go on the backburner, to be resurrected only for possible votes with the result that the scars remain and so does the anger, resentment and a sense of deep hurt.

The temple exists in Ayodhya. It was set up just after  the mosque was destroyed. Puja is offered at the site but this is an embarrassing fact which no one wants to talk about ... There can be neither a temple nor a mosque until the court gives its verdict. But that would mean removing the temple set up under Narasimha Rao's watchful eyes at that time, and which political party can take a stand on this? After all politics and ideology are not expected to go together, the chasm widening as the years go by, and the fact that the site is in the possession of those who

have distorted religion for petty politics is a; fact which unfortunately cannot be wished away by simply ignoring it.

The BJP leaders have now come out with a deal. Catching hold of the highly purchasable mullahs, they kicked off their election campaign with a convention of Muslims in Delhi ... "You give up Ayodhya," said the wise leaders of the BJP. "and we will persuade the VHP to give up Mathura and Kashi." One is not going to waste even a line assessing this proposal ...                                                                                        (Source: The Asian Age, 6 December, 1997)