In Nilambur Kerala, a temple was vandalised in an attempt to create communal tension. The perpetrator, Rajaram Mohandas, was arrested due to a timely intervention by the Kerala Police Department. Soon after the details of the incident were public, a Reddit user wrote an “open letter to all Indians from Kerala” which is making rounds on the social media.
“The doors of the main sanctum and the idols inside were found broken. This was almost immediately followed by a hartal by Hindu Aikya Vedi”, said the user narrating the incident. Consequently, the convict was charged for vandalising the temple and idols and was booked under IPC Section 153A (instilling enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion) and Section 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class).
His letter further elaborated that soon after the incident took place there were rumours of possible Muslim involvement as it happened just on the day of Ramadaan. The writer further notes that such incidents which inculcate communal dispute are not new to India. Many communal riots in the past have been sparked by such baseless rumours.
“Prior to the Gujarat riots, a local newspaper reported an incident, a story about how the bodies of two Hindu women were found on the banks of a river. Two days later the newspaper disavowed the story in a small column in a not so noticeable place. But the damage was done. It fueled cruelty towards women during the ensuing riot. But incidents like this are new to us. We are not familiar with the purposeful spreading of lies to create a split among people of different religions and to benefit from it politically and financially:, notes Dr Nelson Joseph, the Reddit user in his letter.
In conclusion, he writes that while there is a majority of Muslim in Kerala, a purposeful provoking incident such as this couldn’t affect the integrity of the state. As he thanked the people of Kerala, he also suggested them to not jump to conclusions without checking facts, he wrote, “Fortunately Kerala was able to avoid a communal riot. But the state saw a new kind of politics. Politics of lies. Politics trying to create split and violence to gain power and to be in power. We are thankful to the people of Kerala and the efficient police department for keeping the peace and unity of Kerala even after repeated attempts to disrupt this harmony.”
Read the full letter by clicking on the link below:
