‘We have gone through a lot already’: Some Muslims in Ayodhya fearful ahead of Ram temple opening

News Network
December 20, 2023

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Ayodhya: Like many other Muslims, Indian tailor Safi Mohammad plans to send his wife and two sons away before thousands of pilgrims arrive at his hometown of Ayodhya next month for the inauguration of one of the most sacred Hindu temples.

The temple, built on a site a section of Hindus claim to be the birthplace of Sri Ram and where a Mughal-era mosque once stood, stirs bitter memories for Mohammad. The 38-year-old said he remembers when a Hindu mob destroyed the Babri mosque in December 1992, sparking religious riots across the country that killed nearly 2,000 people, most of them Muslims. The dead included his uncle.

"My family has gone through a lot already," he said as he worked at his sewing machine in his home, located a few metres away from the temple. "Anything can happen anytime."

Ayodhya, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, is home to some 3 million people, including 5,00,000 Muslims.

Officials say at least one-tenth of these Muslims live in the immediate vicinity of the newly built Ram Temple, and some of these residents said they are still fearful of Hindutva extremists, especially visitors, because any incident could potentially escalate into a major event.

At least a dozen Muslim men said they too planned to send their families to relatives outside the city ahead of the temple's opening ceremony which is due to take place on Jan. 22.

"We cannot say what will happen around the opening - people in the community are a bit fearful," said Parvez Ahmad Qasmi, who runs an Islamic school in Ayodhya and lost his father-in-law to the riots that occurred more than three decades ago.

Even as some of the residents around the temple expressed apprehension, several Ayodhya Muslims said there had not been any major violence recently, adding that the boost to the local economy from the pilgrims would help them too.

The Ram temple is expected to boost the chances of the BJP at next year's general elections, as it fulfills one of its main campaign promises. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself will inaugurate the temple more than four years after the Supreme Court ended a dispute over the site and awarded it to Hindu groups.

Mass pilgrimage

Sharad Sharma, a Hindu, said everyone in Ayodhya would benefit from the temple and the pilgrims who visit.

"Ayodhya is now a new city which will be an example of communal harmony," Sharma said. "There has not been any violence or unease in the last decade."

Officials expect Ayodhya to receive 4.5 million Hindu pilgrims a month. Some Muslims said the sheer number of visitors makes them worry about their safety.

"It's up to the government what kind of security will be provided to the Muslims with so many people from outside visiting," said resident Haji Acchan Khan, 62.

Ayodhya police chief Raj Karan Nayyar said the authorities would bring in reinforcements, which would be "sufficient to ensure the security of every person, not just one community".

The court order that allowed for the construction of the Ram temple also said authorities must set aside land for a mosque, and construction on that site, about 15 miles (24 km) from the Ram temple, is expected to start next year.

A recent boom in property prices in Ayodhya ahead of the pilgrimage has, however, driven some people to try and illegally grab land allocated to other mosques and even Muslim cemeteries, Mohd Azam Qadri, a leader of the Muslim Sunni Central Waqf Board, said in a letter to local authorities this month.

Ayodhya District Magistrate Nitish Kumar, however, said he had not received complaints about land grabs but said: "in case they come to us ... we will look into the matter and take action accordingly".

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Agencies
March 24,2025

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The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has warned that the tight Israeli blockade on the entry of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza Strip is pushing the coastal territory closer to an acute hunger crisis.

Philippe Lazzarini made the remarks in a social media post, in which he noted that the siege, which is preventing food, medicines, water and fuel from entering the region, has lasted longer than what was in place in the first phase of the war.

Israel has banned the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza since March 4, following the expiry of the first phase of a ceasefire and an agreement with Hamas resistance movement on the exchange of Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners.

Lazzarini warned that Gaza’s population depends on imports via Israeli-occupied territories for their survival.

“Every day that passes without the entry of aid means more children go to bed hungry, diseases spread & deprivation deepens,” he said.

“Every day without food inches Gaza closer to an acute hunger crisis,” the UNRWA chief noted.

Lazzarini described the banning of aid as a collective punishment on Gaza’s population – the vast majority of which are children, women and ordinary men.

He called for the siege to be lifted and for humanitarian aid and commercial supplies to be brought into Gaza “uninterrupted and at scale.”

Backed by the United States and its Western allies, Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against the Israeli regime in response to its decades-long campaign of oppression against Palestinians.

The regime’s bloody onslaught on Gaza has so far killed at least 50,021 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 113,274 others. Thousands more are also missing and presumed dead under the rubble.

On November 21 last year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its deadly war on the blockaded coastal sliver.

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Agencies
March 28,2025

Udupi: Deputy Commissioner K. Vidya Kumari has directed officials to expedite land acquisition for designated industrial zones in the district to facilitate new industries. She issued these instructions during a meeting at Rajatadri on Wednesday.

Lands have been identified across various taluks for industrial development. The DC emphasized that KIADB must acquire these lands and ensure essential infrastructure—electricity, roads, and drainage—to attract industries and generate employment.

A total of 77 acres of private land has been acquired and compensated, including 31.2 acres in Kerebettu village, Hebri taluk, and 45.7 acres in Shivapura village. However, approval for 36.5 acres of government land is still pending. She instructed the forest department to assess whether this land falls under an eco-sensitive zone.

For the Belapu Industrial Area, the DC urged officials to accelerate minor land acquisitions for road expansion and commence construction at the earliest. She also mandated rainwater harvesting systems for all units in the Miyaru Industrial Area to tackle water scarcity.

Currently, 22 export-based units operate in the district. The DC encouraged further promotion of exports and an increase in their number.

The meeting was attended by Joint Director of Industries Nagraj V. Naik, KIADB Development Officer Srinivasa Murthy, Small-Scale Industries Association District President Harish Kunder, Deputy Director of the District Industrial Center Seetharam Shetty, District Skill Development Officer Arun B., and others.

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News Network
March 28,2025

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When the ground violently shook beneath his feet, Prem Kishore Mohanty, an Indian expatriate in Bangkok, was attending his five-year-old daughter's school sports day. What began as a routine event—children competing, parents cheering—quickly turned into a moment of panic as tremors struck.

"I felt my head spinning and had to sit down. The overhead lights swayed, and chairs moved," said Mr. Mohanty, 44. The school's PA system quickly announced an emergency evacuation, directing everyone to the outdoor field while warning against using nearby lanes lined with high-rise towers.

Water from rooftop swimming pools, including those at the InterContinental Bangkok, cascaded down buildings, as captured in viral videos.

Fear and Chaos as Bangkok Shakes
The 7.7-magnitude earthquake, with its epicenter in Myanmar, sent powerful tremors into Thailand, bringing Bangkok to an abrupt standstill. Public transport was suspended, traffic snarled, and people evacuated buildings, waiting anxiously for the all-clear.

Earthquakes are rare in Bangkok, a city more accustomed to heat and monsoons than seismic shocks. For the Mohanty family, who live in a high-rise apartment in Sukhumvit, confusion and fear gripped them as the evacuation began.

"It was terrifying. We were told to take the fire escape stairwell and wait outside. There was no time to think," Mr. Mohanty recalled.

Now safe, he remains shaken by the unexpected jolt that turned a normal day into a moment of chaos for his family and thousands across the city.

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