In an outrageous act, some Muslim women offered Namaz at the historic Shaniwar Wada Fort in Maharashtra’s Pune. Following this, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Medha Kulkarni initiated a purification ceremony at the fort and a protest was held on Sunday (19th October). The protest was organised by the Patit Pavan Sanghatana and other Hindu organisations.
This comes after a video of some Muslim women offering namaz on 17th October at the fort built by Peshwa Bajirao went viral online. Following this, BJP MP Medha Kulkarni, along with her supporters, reached Shaniwar Wada, sprinkled cow urine, and performed Shiva Vandana. Earlier, Kulkarni wrote on social media, “We will not allow namaz to be offered at Shaniwar Wada. Hindu society has now awakened.”
Kulkarni said the protest was to maintain social harmony in Pune and demand police action. He said, “Shaniwar Wada is a symbol of Hindu Swaraj; it is not a mosque.” He called a dargah outside the fort an illegal religious structure and questioned whether Hindus should be allowed to perform aarti at mosques or the Taj Mahal if namaz is permitted there.
Meanwhile, the opposition parties including Congress , NCP, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) called it a conspiracy to polarise. Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said, “If the Peshwas had no objection to the dargah, why should Kulkarni?”
The NCP called it an attempt to disturb religious harmony and demanded that a police complaint be filed, while the AAP said the move was an attempt to provoke Hindu voters ahead of the local elections.
