The Kashi Kaand

One has to wonder how helpless Hindus must have felt when the barbaric Mughal invaders went around destroying ancient temples. Countless tales of mass murder, take over of temples and imposition of Jaziya abound. It’s hard to narrate all the tragedies and sacrifices in one shot. The barbarians didn’t know to build anything. So, all they did was break temples of others, plant a dome on it, declare it a mosque and become the “new management”. The holiest temple of Jews in Jerusalem suffered similar barbarism.

Hindus fought against Babri and got the Ram Mandir through courts but the scars of Mathura and Kashi remain. Somnath suffered many times and finally had to be rebuilt by Hindus The story goes that Naga Sadhus fought Aurangzeb and defeated him to protect the Kashi Vishwanath. Aurangzeb raided it again and partially destroyed the temple and planted a mosque in it. The greatest of mosques in the world cannot match the grandeur and architecture of an average ancient Hindu temple. The barbarians are gone but the new barbarians are called “Government” who have replaced Ghazni, Ghori, Khilji and Aurangzeb as the modern destroyers and looters of Hindu temples.

Most unfortunately, it is the leaders of BJP too, who deceptively claimed Hindutva, are in the forefront of destruction and fresh loot of Hindu temples in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttarakhand. And leading them is none other than PM Narendra Modi. Unlike a relatively new country like the USA, India is an ancient marvel where cities and villages were built ages ago with narrow lanes and houses kissing each other. Most of our villages and cities were built around rivers – naturally.

Modi has a passion for “beautification”. This probably comes after his early trips to the US in the 1990s. It’s good to have such a passion. The “Swachh Bharat” project has definitely contributed to cleanliness, modernization, hygiene and a better feeling across India. But what damages Modi is his Aurangzeb like behaviour when it comes to Hindu temples and his quest for reckless beautification. He had shown it in Gujarat by destroying temples and he has now shown it in the ancient Hindu city of Kashi. The Italian Mafia created a wonderland in the desert and established Las Vegas as the Sin City. Modi wants to do the same for a heritage city.

Kashi is not a barren desert – It is the cluster of history and living proof of the great Hindu civilization. Some of the oldest cities in the world – London, Rome, Paris have the narrowest streets where cars and buses still ply. They have not demolished adjacent old buildings to widen the roads. They have preserved their history:

Therefore, while welcoming the grand Kashi Vishwanath Corridor (KVC) when it was conceived, what was the need to go about wanton demolition of temples on the way? The arrogant “Double Engine” govt of Modi-Yogi recklessly went about like Aurangzeb demolishing everything on the way from the Ghat to the KV complex. 300 houses were destroyed and the inhabitants were given some compensation. But that is not all, while the demolition brought many hidden temples (around 40 according to reports) to daylight, there were many that were simply destroyed for the beautification.

Some of the old temples were not even obstructing the making of KVC in anyway. What really happens is, Modi wants to do what the Mughal barbarians did, destroy old temples standing the way of KVC, lay some foundation stone and declare “BUILT BY MODI”:

The passion of Modi, apart from the beautification at any cost, is that he wants the same status like the farcical “Father of the nation” title and to be remembered as the “Father of Varanasi” or “Father of Modern India”. MK Gandhi didn’t demand that title but the ego maniac that Modi is, he desperately wants such titles and awards. It is this maniacal quest that destroys everything in its way when there is absolute power of “Double Engine”.

There are bozos of BJP IT Cell and other Modi-Coolies who grandly claim no temple or shrine was destroyed in KVC. They claim that the locals had encroached and built their houses (and even toilets) around many old temples. The problem with being a BJP Blonde is that you will concoct such nonsense. Varanasi is full of houses that are over 100-200 years old. How stupid it is to claim that people hunted for temples and built houses around them? If that was the case, most grand temples of India would be within a housing complex. Many residents had a practice of building a small temple within their housing complex.

Friends following the Kashi events have shared history books on Kashi clearly repudiating any nonsensical claims of encroachment and even comparing the areas to old Spanish alleys. These alleys are NOT a nuisance in our lives, they are living proof of WHO WE WERE. They may need “gentle” renovation not criminal destruction:

It is just that when these houses obstructing KVC were destroyed, the temples also got destroyed. Some bigger temples that were exposed due to the demolition became visible and had to be preserved because they are too big to destroy without a huge outrage. How stupid would it be if someone claimed Lutyens first built the Parliament in Delhi and then Indians built houses around it? That’s what these defenders of the modern Aurangzeb are doing.

 Many Hindu temple approaches have been dirty and poorly maintained. So, there is a justification for improving those conditions but that cleaning up cannot be destruction of heritage and ancient history. A good chunk of Indian population lives in filthy slums. The option of cleaning slums on a grand scale is rarely undertaken. You can destroy a slum (having foolishly allowed it to grow in the first place) if you are going to rebuild with alternatives. But there cannot be an alternative to a heritage site with temples. When Delhi elections were around, Modi announced regularization of unauthorized colonies occupied by 40 lakh people. None of the houses destroyed for KVC were notified illegal or encroachment. What is the primary goal of Modi in this KVC? It’s not really any great religious support but a mini amusement park with all of these:

Here is Ajay Sharma, who probably lives in Kashi and he posted this video on his Facebook account of the Kashi demolitions around November 24 (This is a 2.20 min excerpt but you can watch the full 11 minute video on his Facebook page):

Sharma narrates that temples have not only disappeared but were not found hidden in houses but were on the main lanes to the KV temple. Now those temples have been demolished to make way for hotels. There will be malls, museums, food courts – all the fancy stuff that will replace the shrines. This is NOT “cleaning up filth” and beautification – this is creating a Boogie Wonderland for the fantasies of Modi. There are others too. Shivam Mishra has written a lengthy article on the “Kyotisation of Kashi” in Pragyata and documented the demolitions with pictures on Twitter too:

The bulldozer cum earthmoving machine is certainly not in the temple complex to do an “Aarti” with its claws. Images of damaged, desecrated idols of many Hindu Gods and vigrahas are floating on SM. Another passionate observer Rati Hegde too has written in Pragyata on turning Kashi into mere materialism. Ritu Rathaur who has regularly tweeted about the damage to shrines in Kashi has faced abuse from Modi’s goons from their IT Cell and assorted idiots. She has posted pics that cannot be denied even by the most desperate of BJP liars:

Why do Modi, Yogi and the entire BJP-RSS gang dare to be insensitive to Hindus, demolish temples at will, loot temple wealth illegally for govt use (From Siddhi Vinayak, Shirdi Trust in Maharashtra), take over temples while promising to free them? It’s only because Hindus are docile, law-abiding citizens. In 2018 a portion of the GyanVapi platform was demolished. It was a very minor demolition but hundreds of Muslims gathered to agitate. The platform was rebuilt overnight by cowards of the BJP govt:

The renovation of a heritage site cannot be undertaken in the same vein as a commercial complex or even a tourist site. A heritage monument and site are living proofs of our ancestors and history. Kashi is the most important site in the lives of Hindus. It forms part of even Hindu marriage rituals. While I am not an expert in architecture, I have repeatedly come across anecdotes that Kashi is divinity in its layout and architecture. Hindu temples are built with some scientific and ritualistic principles. The old map of Kashi doing the rounds itself looks like a complex, intriguing puzzle. That is how complex Hinduism itself is – it is not a product of some fancy book like the Desert cults.

 

There is a most telling incident that best describes the “Kashi Kaand”. On June 1, 2021 a demolished building collapsed on some workers sleeping around it. The PM urgently inquired about it. The authorities quickly announced 5 lakhs for the dead (normally PMO consistently gives 2 lakhs for the dead in accidents/calamities). The whole matter was quickly hushed up too. Why? Because the labour was IMPORTED all the way from Malda in Bengal, they were all Muslims. And its because the dead were Muslims, they commanded a higher compensation as usual. It is fair to conclude no Hindu was willing to commit the sin of demolishing temples. So, the KVT had to “import” Muslims from Bengal to do the dirty job. Very clever indeed:

Modi thirsts for beauty but fails to understand the underlying principles behind Hinduism. Thus, he seems to want lipstick beauty everywhere; from his clothing, make up, photo ops to even Hindu temple sites. The Muslims didn’t allow even a small platform at GyanVapi to be demolished. (There are thousands of illegal mosques and dargahs all across India. You will rarely hear of any of them being demolished). The authorities quickly surrendered and rebuilt it overnight. Muslims agitated violently in Amravati and Malegaon in Maharashtra over a fake news of mosque attacked in far away Tripura.

Modi got slapped by Hindus in Bengal – he didn’t learn. Modi got a bigger slap by rioting fake farmers. He had to swallow a bitter pill. Will he learn? NO! Arrogant Aurangzebs don’t learn – they crash in the same car over and over again. It’s only Hindus that sleep over all the atrocities on their shrines and heritage sites. The KVC action is not cleaning up or beautification, it’s another wanton action on a Hindu heritage site beyond any sensible proportions compounded by excessive LIES over the demolitions. All this in addition to temple demolitions in other states. The BJP has demolished the most temples in recent decades. Aurangzeb is alive and kicking.

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