Did Rajiv Gandhi get the lock of Babri Masjid opened under some deal?

The claim that the lock of Babri Masjid was opened at the behest of Rajiv Gandhi and that it was used in the Shah Bano case (Muslim appeasement) versus Ram Mandir is a blatant lie. The truth is that the former Prime Minister was not even aware of what happened in Ayodhya on February 1, 1986, and this was the reason for dropping Arun Nehru from the post of minister.

On February 1, 1986, District Judge KM Pandey, while hearing an appeal filed just a day earlier, i.e. on January 31, 1986, ordered the gate of the Babri Masjid, which had been closed for nearly 37 years, to be opened.

There is a belief that Rajiv Gandhi's government (at that time there was a Congress government in Uttar Pradesh as well) opened the lock of Babri Masjid because it had overturned the Supreme Court's decision on alimony in the case of Muslim divorced woman Shah Bano by bringing a law in the Parliament. This entire case is said to be a political bargain of the Congress.

For more insights on related political developments, refer to Vaartha National and Vaartha ePaper.

Babri Mosque and MJ Akbar's Role?

The Rajiv Gandhi government implemented the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act in May 1986. This law was brought to repeal the Supreme Court's decision given in the Shah Bano case on 23 April 1985.

The Supreme Court had said that under Section 125 of the Indian Penal Code, a separated or divorced wife can ask for maintenance money from her husband, and this also applies to Muslims. The court had said that there is no conflict between Section 125 and Muslim Personal Law.

Former Minister of State for External Affairs in the Narendra Modi government and current Rajya Sabha MP MJ Akbar had advised the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to change the Supreme Court's decision in the Washa Bano case by bringing a law.

On the Ayodhya case, Wajahat Habibullah says, “Soon while on a tour to Gujarat, I raised the issue of opening the lock of Babri Masjid with the Prime Minister, on which he said that he came to know about the matter only after the court order came and Arun Nehru had not consulted him in any way.”

Arun Nehru was then the Union Minister of State for Home in the Rajiv Gandhi government.

For more details on national affairs, check out Vaartha National and the latest updates on Vaartha ePaper.

Shah Bano alimony case and Babri Mosque

The Shah Bano alimony case had turned into a Hindu-Muslim issue. While reporting on the entire issue in the English newspaper The Statesman, Neerja Chaudhary had written at that time, "It will be very difficult to find a solution to the way the government is trying to adopt the policy of appeasement of both the communities for electoral gains."

In the 1984 Lok Sabha elections, Congress had got 49 percent votes and won 404 seats while the BJP was reduced to just eight percent votes.

In an interview given to the website 'Scroll', the current Governor of Kerala Arif Mohammad Khan had claimed that Rajiv Gandhi was persuaded by Congress leader Najma Heptullah to bring the new law.

Najma Heptullah later joined the BJP. Arif Mohammad Khan also joined the BJP later.

Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and Congress leader Kamal Nath, who was close to the Gandhi-Nehru family, had given a statement a few days ago that Rajiv Gandhi had a role in getting the lock of Babri Masjid opened.

To read further details, explore Vaartha National and stay updated with Vaartha ePaper.