The newspaper headlines were telling. On the front page, in the top corner, was the grim news: “GDP growth slumps to a seven-quarter low of 5.4 per cent.” But on the same front page, a banner headline stretched across the page and overshadowed the news on the economy. This banner headline was about yet another religious conflict: “Sambhal Mosque wars.”
As unemployment rages and massive inflation wreaks havoc on household budgets, the Modi government is happy to keep the pot boiling on religious conflicts and places of worship.
This week, on 6 December, it will be 32 years since the demolition of the Babri Masjid by frenzied Hindutva foot soldiers. Today, the government is watching silently while another Babri Masjid-like situation is allowed to develop in Sambhal in western UP.
