Foundation for ‘Babri’ masjid in West Bengal sparks political fire

BERHAMPORE/KOLKATA: A 12km stretch of NH-12 in Murshidabad froze for three hours Saturday as several thousand people — some carrying bricks and stone chips — streamed into a high-voltage foundation ceremony for a “Babri Masjid–styled” mosque on the 33rd anniversary of the 1992 demolition in Ayodhya, reigniting Bengal’s fiercest political and communal fault lines.

The programme, organised by suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir at Beldanga, happened under heavy security. Authorities reported no clashes. Kabir addressed about 400 people from a two-tier stage set nearly a kilometre from the proposed mosque site, introduced two clerics described as being from Saudi Arabia, and cut a ceremonial ribbon amid cries of “Nara-e-Takbeer, Allahu Akbar”.




“There is nothing unconstitutional about this. Building a place of worship is a constitutional right. Babri Masjid will be built,” Kabir declared, framing the project as what he called “emotional restitution” for the 1992 demolition.

Claiming threats over the naming of the mosque after Mughal emperor Babar, Kabir invoked numbers to defend the project: “There are 40 crore Muslims in the country and four crore in this state. Can we not build one mosque here?”

The scale of mobilisation spilled into commerce. Brick kiln owner Abdul Bashir said he sold 32,000 bricks at Rs 10 a piece — above the usual Rs 8 rate — earning over Rs 3 lakh. Seven catering agencies prepared biryani for 30,000 people. A Kabir aide told PTI food alone cost Rs 30 lakh and the total budget crossed Rs 70 lakh. Donation boxes were circulated, and an SBI account with a QR code in the name of “West Bengal Islamic Foundation of India” was announced.

TMC sought to distance itself. Party spokesman Kunal Ghosh said people had the right to build religious structures on private land, but warned that using such events to “spread religious venom” for political gain crossed a line.

BJP launched a blistering attack. “This so-called mosque project is not a religious effort but a political one, designed to inflame emotions and consolidate vote banks,” said Amit Malviya. Former Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh accused TMC of stoking communal passions before 2026 polls.

CM Mamata Banerjee on X warned against forces “igniting fire of communalism” and said Bengal’s soil “has never bowed down to division”.
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