'No regrets' over mosque demolition

Chandigarh : On the eve of the Babri Masjid demolition anniversary, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said yesterday that the Hindu group has "no regrets" about the razing of the mosque in Ayodhya 17 years ago.

Speaking at the Chandigarh Press Club, the RSS chief, responding to a question on whether the rightwing Hindu group regretted the demolition, said: "Afsos ka prashna hi nahin uthta [there is no question of any regrets]."

"We all want the temple to be built there [Ayodhya]. The RSS will always be associated with the temple issue," Bhagwat said.

The 16th century Babri mosque was demolished by Hindu activists on this day in 1992, triggering communal clashes in the country.

The RSS chief also questioned the credibility of the Liberhan Commission report on the Babri mosque demolition.

He said: "What has been said in the Liberhan report could have been said in 1993 also. There is a question mark over the credibility of the commission report. There are many factual errors in it."

"There was no conspiracy in the mosque demolition as pointed out by the Liberhan report. This is the truth," he said.

Indictment

Asked if the image of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had been dented by the indictment of top BJP leaders by the Liberhan report, Bhagwat said: "The BJP will have to resolve the issue of its image."

Bhagwat said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is an independent political organisation and the RSS had "no time' to run it.

Bhagwat said: "Hamare paas usko (BJP) chalane ki fursat nahin hai." (We don't have the time to run the BJP).

"The BJP is a political party. What they do is contrary to our work. We have the power to run its (BJP) affairs but we don't want to do that. If our help is sought on any issue, we will help. They have capable leaders to run their affairs," he added.

The RSS chief, who is known for his forthright views on various issues, hoped that the BJP would resolve its leadership issue.

"What the BJP leadership has told us, we hope they will do that. They will decide when and how they will do this," he said.

He added that neither he nor the RSS had any information on who would be the next BJP president.