Opinion | Bengal's Babri Masjid Echo: When TMC's Tokenism Trumps Justice |
In the Muslim-majority heartland of Murshidabad, West Bengal, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Humayun Kabir (now suspended) ignited a firestorm last week by announcing plans to lay the foundation stone for a mosque modelled on the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on December 6 – the 33rd anniversary of the 1992 demolition that scarred India’s secular fabric. Kabir, representing the Bharatpur constituency, framed the move as a bold assertion of Muslim rights, accusing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of favouring Hindu temple constructions while neglecting mosque projects, even labelling her an “RSS Chief Minister" in a pointed critique of her government’s spending priorities.
This wasn’t mere rhetoric; Kabir vowed to proceed with the event in Beldanga, complete with Quran recitations, defying party warnings and raising alarms over potential law-and-order breakdowns, as flagged by the state governor and a public interest litigation in the Calcutta High Court. The TMC’s response came swiftly but superficially on December 4, suspending Kabir for “gross indiscipline" and “communal politics," a decision announced by senior leader Firhad Hakim after multiple prior cautions.
Yet, as Kabir defiantly pledged to quit the party, form a new outfit by December 22, and contest 135 seats in the 2026 assembly polls, the episode underscores deeper fault lines. It highlights the perils of symbolic gestures amid rising communal polarisation, the BJP’s opportunistic accusations of “Babur’s rule" in Bengal, and the landowner’s outright refusal to cede property for the site – turning a political stunt into a logistical quagmire. While the court directed authorities to ensure the event adheres to legal norms without disrupting peace, the absence of criminal charges leaves unanswered questions: Is this........