On 27th January, Jangpura Extension Welfare Association issued a notice to Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and his daughter Suranya Aiyer over the rant on social media against Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha ceremony in Ayodhya that took place on 22nd January 2024.
In the notice, the RWA not only sought an apology from Suranya but also urged Mani Shankar to condemn his daughter’s actions. Furthermore, RWA urged Suranya to move out of the colony if she thought what she had done was right.
कांग्रेस के खून में ही हिन्दू विरोध भरा है.#मणिशंकर_अय्यर की बेटी #सुरन्या_अय्यर राम मंदिर का विरोध कर,उन मुगलों के गुणगान गा रही है जिन्होंने देश को लूटपाट और अत्याचार के अलावा कुछ नहीं दिया पर अब तुष्टीकरण के दिन लद गए है,बाप बेटी को पड़ी लात इसका प्रमाण है@journalistRajan pic.twitter.com/axbi4DXZ4n
— Amit Kharkhari (@KharkhariAmit) January 30, 2024
The letter was shared on social media by BJP leader Amit Kharkhari. In the letter, signed by President Dr Kapil Kakar, RWA pointed out that it was the association’s responsibility to ensure there was cordial relation between all residents of the colony. It read, “What Ms Aiyer said through social media was certainly unbecoming of an educated person who should have understood that the Ram Mandir was being built after 500 years and that after 5-0 Supreme Court verdict.”
It added that the hate speech by Suranya and the 3-day fast she kept in a peace-loving society where most of the residents came from Pakistan after partition was unfortunate. The RWA urged Suranya to “follow the norms of a good citizen and do not provoke anyone by creating hatred and mistrust amongst people.”
RWA urged her that instead of ranting on social media, she should have approached the court against the verdict in favour of Hindus and the Ram Mandir. The notice read, “Taking out your frustration which impacts the religious sentiments of people cannot be endorsed by the Association”. President of the RWA Dr Kakar personally requested Mani Shankar Aiyer to condemn her daughter’s rant as “it was not in good taste for the colony and the society as a whole”.
Urging Suranya to move out of the society if she thinks what she did was right, the notice read, “In case you still think what you have done in protesting against the consecration of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya [was right], we would suggest you to kindly move out to another colony where people and RWA’s can turn a blind eye to such hatred.”
Speaking to OpIndia, Dr Kakar confirmed that the letter was issued by RWA. Furthermore, he also confirmed that RWA did not receive any reply from Mani Shankar Aiyer or Suranya Aiyer over the notice.
Speaking to Republic TV, Dr Kakar said, “The kind of statements that she, as a resident of the society has made, have come to us through others and it has disturbed the peace in the society. Such sort of claims are uncalled for. We don’t have any problem with her opinions on Mughals and her sympathy with Muslims but the kind of atmosphere which her provocative statements have created, can truly disturb the peace and harmony in the society and we, collectively demand an apology from her.”
Suranya’s meltdown over Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha
On 19th January, two days before Pran Pratishtha, Suranya Aiyar posted a lengthy rant on Facebook along with a video reading out the same rant. Suranya began a fast on 20th January in protest against Pran Pratishtha and ended it on 23rd January. Her address began with the words, “With the forthcoming event in Ayodhya on January 22, the atmosphere here in Delhi, already famous for being polluted in a material sense, has thickened to a spiritually poisonous and unbreathable concentrate of Hindu chauvinism, malice and bullying. I am deeply anguished by all this as an Indian and as a Hindu.”
She said that she is protesting “first and foremost as an expression of my love and sorrow to my Muslim fellow citizens of India. I cannot let this moment pass without saying as loud as I can to my Muslim brothers and sisters that I love you and that I condemn and repudiate what is being done in the name of Hinduism and nationalism in Ayodhya.” She says atrocious things like “the Mughals were also not enemies of the Rajputs for all the 500 years that they ruled here”. She calls the Ram Janmabhoomi movement a “lie”. She begins to sound frustrated when talking about Babri Masjid demolition trying to separate “saffronites” from Hindu devotion and Gods.
