As the politics over the January 22 Ram Temple inauguration builds up in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, the Urdu Press has turned its gaze on some key questions about the idea of India, expressing concerns over the deepening social fault lines in the country. Flagging that the State and religion have converged in the Ayodhya event, some of the Urdu dailies tried to decode its ramifications for a secular constitutional democracy.

Another story that the dailies closely tracked was Rahul Gandhi’s Yatra 2.0, underlining that the Congress has pinned its poll hopes on the progress of this march.

SIASAT

Referring to the January 22 consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the Hyderabad-based Siasat, in its editorial on January 13, notes that the BJP has not left any stone unturned to extract political mileage from the event in the parliamentary poll season. “Although the Supreme Court cleared the decks for the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, which was assigned to a Trust, the BJP has now taken over the entire event, turning a religious matter into a political one while looking to cash in on it in the Lok Sabha polls.”

As regards the Opposition’s stand on the issue, it betrays uncertainty, the editorial says, while adding that parties such as the Congress which have decided to skip the Temple’s inauguration are being attacked by the BJP for being “anti-Hindu”. “A dividing line seems to have been drawn at the social and religious levels between the Hindu and the Muslim communities, and the BJP does not want to erase this line since it ensures its political success,” the edit charges. “The Congress and some other regional parties might be trying to take up other issues related to people’s burning problems, but the BJP backed by a pro-establishment media are thwarting such attempts, keeping the focus firmly on the Hindu-Muslim issues.”

The daily says that while the BJP and other Sangh Parivar organisations have been targeting the Congress for declining the invite for the Ayodhya function, the Shankaracharyas too have expressed problems with the consecration event. “The Shankaracharyas are not against the Temple but against its politicisation. This is also the Opposition parties’ position. However, the BJP cannot call the Shankaracharyas ‘anti-Hindus’ or ‘pro-Muslims’. The Opposition should publicise the views of these Hindu religious heads,” the editorial says. “To take on the BJP’s formidable Hindutva campaign, the Opposition parties would need to put their act together and reach out to people with their own narrative. By only issuing statements against the BJP, they would not be able to counter it. They need a comprehensive roadmap and prompt action for the purpose.”

AKHBAR-E-MASHRIQ

Commenting on the Opposition INDIA bloc’s decision to appoint Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge as its chairperson and offer to his JD(U) counterpart and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar to be its convener, the multi-edition Akhbar-e-Mashriq, in its editorial on January 15, notes that there could be two main reasons behind Nitish’s decision not to accept the convener post, despite the request of the Congress high command. “One, there had been a long delay by the alliance in offering Nitish its convenership. And, secondly, with Kharge being named as the chairperson, Nitish seemed to have reservations that he would be required to work under him.”

During the virtual meeting of the heads of several INDIA parties over the weekend, which was skipped by the TMC’s Mamata Banerjee, SP’s Akhilesh Yadav and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Uddhav Thackeray, it was CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury who proposed the names of Kharge and Nitish for leadership roles, which were seconded by the others, says the editorial. “When they repeatedly pressed him, Nitish pitched RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s name as the convener.”

The daily writes that with Kharge entrusted with the responsibility to lead the alliance to take on the ruling BJP in the Lok Sabha elections, he faces an “uphill task”. “This is going to be a big test for Kharge. And on top of his priorities, he should be ensuring that there is only one candidate of the alliance against the BJP’s nominee in every constituency.”

The editorial points out that Nitish has not rejected the offer outright, but said that he was pending a consensus involving Mamata, Akhilesh and Uddhav too. The need of the hour for the alliance parties is however to come clean, resolve their differences and close their ranks, the edit says. “Otherwise, any rifts in their unity would only give further advantage to the BJP.”

ROZNAMA RASHTRIYA SAHARA

As Rahul Gandhi set off on his second Yatra, called Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, the multi-edition Roznama Rashtriya Sahara, in its leader on January 15, says that there are some similarities and differences between the Congress leader’s two marches. While Rahul had undertaken Bharat Jodo Yatra with the objective to connect the people and unite the country amid an atmosphere of hate and division, his Yatra 2.0 is meant to champion the cause of “justice — social, economic and political justice”, it notes, highlighting that the Nyay Yatra will pass through 100 Lok Sabha constituencies.

The daily states that given the timing of Rahul’s Yatra 2.0, it would be clearly a campaign march against the Modi-led BJP government with the Lok Sabha polls just round the corner. “This time, the Congress has invited its INDIA bloc allies to join the Yatra in their strongholds. It is to be seen how many of them participate in it. As his first march had created a wide resonance, the Congress has high hopes that Rahul’s second act would also strike a chord,” the editorial says.

While kicking off the march from Thoubal, Rahul set the tone, telling people that he is undertaking it to listen to their stories and concerns. “The choice of Manipur as the starting point of the Yatra is significant as the state has been roiled by ethnic clashes since May last year,” the edit says, adding that the Congress has made all efforts and galvanised its leaders to ensure the Yatra’s success.