Sonia Gandhi wept seeing Babri Masjid demolition

Senior Indian National Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has revealed that she wept while watching the demolition of the historic Babri Masjid on television in 1992, recognising it as a severe threat to India's secular fabric.

In an interview published by British media outlet The Guardian on Saturday (7 November), Sonia stated, "I cried as I watched the Babri Masjid being pulled down on television. Through this, I understood that India faced a long struggle ahead to protect its secularism."

The 16th-century mosque in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, was destroyed on 6 December 1992 by right-wing Hindu nationalists who claimed an ancient temple stood beneath it, a movement heavily fueled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Reflecting on the event, Sonia noted she realised India was entering a difficult test to preserve the secular vision championed by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and their peers. She also acknowledged that the Congress party bears some responsibility for the rise of Hindu nationalism in the country.

Following her remarks, the BJP launched a sharp counterattack. BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari accused the Congress of being "anti-Hindu," writing on X that Sonia shed tears for the Babri Masjid and the Batla House encounter, proving the party's alleged bias.

The demolition of the mosque triggered widespread communal violence across India for years. Fulfilling a core political promise, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Hindu temple on the site in 2024.

-SA