Lucknow, June 20
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh today accused Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, Union HRD Minister M.M. Joshi and senior Sangh leaders of hatching a conspiracy to demolish Babri Mosque in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992.
“It was a conspiracy in which senior BJP leaders, including Vajpayee, Advani and Dr Joshi apart from RSS functionaries and senior VHP leaders were involved,” Mr Kalyan Singh told reporters a day after the BJP advocate held the then UP Government led by him responsible for the demolition of the mosque during a hearing before the Librahan Commission.
He said he was not aware of the conspiracy. “I was told by senior leaders that only a symbolic kar seva would be performed at the disputed site … I believed them and they stabbed me in the back,” he said.
Mr Kalyan Singh, who had severed his ties with the BJP and floated the Rashtriya Kranti Party (RKP), said to cover up the party’s misdeeds, the BJP advocate had blamed my government for the demolition.
“The fact is that neither my, nor P.V. Narasimha Rao’s government in the Centre could be held responsible for the demolition,” he said.
The former Chief Minister revealed that months before kar seva took place at Karsevakpuram in Ayodhya, a meeting was held at the central office of the RSS at Jhandewala in New Delhi. “Vajpayee, Advani, VHP leaders Giriraj Kishore and Ashok Singhal were present. I was also invited to the meeting, he said.
Swami Chinmayanand, at present Minister of State for Home in Vajpayee’s government, and Rajmata Sindhiya had drafted a letter saying that on December 6 there would be a symbolic kar seva and no damage would be done to the disputed structure.
“I was made to sign on the dotted line,” he said, adding that the same letter was sent to the Supreme Court and based on that, the apex court allowed kar seva at the disputed site.
He said on December 6, senior BJP leaders, including Mr Advani and Dr Joshi, were present at Karsevakpuram. First they gave fiery speeches and later incited kar sevaks to demolish the mosque.
When asked as to why the Central forces were not deployed at the site, he said the forces were stationed at a college ground around 8 km from the disputed site and the kar sevaks had formed a human chain, preventing the troops from reaching the disputed site. He alleged that instead of telling the truth, the BJP leaders were trying to mislead the people and put the blame on the state government.
