Why should the (not a) Ram Mandir be built
Being atheist is fashionable, questioning the tenets of Hinduism is elite and calling everything regressive is equated to being scientific. In 2019, let us keep politics aside and have a civilized negotiation around building the Ram Mandir. As Dr. Subramanian Swamy says it is our fundamental right to pray at a place we consider as the birthplace of Lord Ram. The Mandir should be built, but Hindus should not act pompous when it happens.
Disclaimer: Read before you jump guns
The fact that a Hindu is presenting these points definitely puts me in a spot. But, before you jump guns, please know this Hindu is apologetic about what happened in 1992, she vociferously says violence should be condemned, and knows politics around it is pathetic. But, here are my reasons for building the Ram Temple.
It holds sentimental value for Hindus, but disrespect for Muslims
One is acutely aware of the disrespect (and even fear) the Muslim community faced when the Babri Masjid was demolished. Never again should it happen to any community in their own country. Every Hindu should unconditionally apologize for the violent incident. And, Muslims should acknowledge the existence of an older religious site as per ASI excavations. For Muslims, the exact location of Babri Masjid is not as significant as it for Hindus. Notably, the SC had earlier said that mosque is not essential for praying in Islam.
It is a reasonable demand in secular Hindustan
Whether that is the birthplace of Lord Ram is questionable, whether Ram exists or not is also debatable. Whether we need temples to pray as God exists everywhere is also a logical argument. But all these questions are subjective in nature. What is absolutely objective is the fact that the excavations have proved there was a temple before a mosque there, and that Mughals had destroyed innumerable temples in India. No one is asking to restore all of them. It is just one temple which holds value to Hindus in Hindustan.
Status quo is not helping anyone
For most of our growing age, we have been hearing about this issue - sometimes actively, at other times passively. It has found a permanent place in BJP's manifesto, Congress has done enough minority appeasement and elite media has been bashing the religion they openly hate. So, who is winning in all this tamasha of status quo- the orthodox (and I use this word with caution) Hindus who have been fooled in believing that a temple would be constructed or Muslims who have been used for vote bank politics?
Only then will Hindu parties stop doing politics around it
The timing is ripe for temple construction, otherwise it will forever remain a disputed issue. Let us visualize a few scenarios: Scenario No. 1- BJP wins 2019: By now, we know it is just an issue to gain political mileage for self-proclaimed Hindu nationalist, Modi. If he couldn't get the temple built in 4.5 years of absolute majority, there will be no urgency post his win in 2019. Scenario No. 2- BJP loses 2019: The issue will certainly be buried by the other parties. By 2024, it will again be vicious circle with no Swamy-led centrifugal force.
Hear it from the expert
Not hospital, not school, but temple
In a developing country like ours, there can't be enough schools or hospitals. But, at the risk of taking an unpopular stand, a hospital or a school is not an answer here. They can be built elsewhere, why should they be built at that particular holy location? Now is the time to end this dispute once and for all, and there is only one way to end it. Can Supreme Court guide the nation?
