The right-wing BJP hit up the ramp to power by mixing religion with politics.There followed an enormously successful mobilisation among Hindus all over North India. They laid the foundation of new temple and a new movement to rage the mosque. BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani led a Rathayatra (literally, a `chariot-journey') through north India.It looked like play-acting to everyone except the believers.For them, it kindled dim memories of the Ashvamedha Yagna, the ancient ceremony profitably used by kings who wanted to enlarge their territories. His tantrums worked until the `chariot' reached the border of Bihar, which was then administered by a lower-caste chief minister who had no use for such Brahminical rubbish. Advani found himself taken into custody for disturbing the peace. The movement was over.But only until 1991, when there was another mobilisation by a much stronger BJP. Thousands of rampaging activists tore down the Babri mosque, quite literally, with their bare hands. There was unprecedented rioting across the country.BJP supporters and affiliates regularly demand that a temple has to be built on the site of the razed mosque. If that happens, another round of bloodshed is inevitable. The violence surrounding the demolition, in which so many lost their lives, has not really been addressed by the courts. The people responsible for the demolition -- who had persuaded the government of the day that nothing would happen -- and the people who instigated the riots walk free. Why is it so that the politics is used as a weapon again and again by political parties to further their interest. History is being repeated again in Maharashtra in the name of regionalism, the only difference is that the players have changed but what never changed is the use of common people for their own destruction.
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Any kind of collective action requires arousing the emotions of the comman mass so that they can attach very closly with the cause.Many Politicians of different political party always look out for some kind of the issue which is of some interest to everyone. So according to the CONVERGENT THERORY they come together having a simillar interest and same predisposition.Babri maszid case or recent case of regionalism in maharshtra is the example of such collectivism. manish pandey (28019)
The demolition of Babari Mosque by a section of Hindu population is an important incident in modern history of India. This incident represents rise of a new ideology driven by hatred, intolerance and feeling of having different & better identity. Seeing the kind of support this movement got along with the emotional appeal it once held, it can be classified as an example of collective action. Even though this action is not justified, but it is an example of collective action driven by a powerful symbol of north India. This symbol is the name of Shri Ram. This movement was validated in the name of religion which is one of the most dominating identities of people. The behaviour of the crowd was not spontaneous, but was predictable as the movement was going on for few years. Thus the demolition of the Babari mosque can be explained with the help of convergent theory. Even though the act of demolition looks foolish and uncivilised but the cruel truth is that it explains the struggle between present and past. The disturbance in Maharashtra in the name of regionalism represents another form of collective behaviour driven by the issue of identity. The unfortunate fact is that the collective behaviour of people is used by some selfish leader for getting power instead of welfare of the people.
Vinay Kumar Mishra (28050)
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