Religious leaders condemn attack on Mahabodhi temple

Chamikara Weerasinghe

Religious leaders yesterday alerted the country to extremist and terrorist groups going to great lengths to cause religious disharmony, communal unrest and social division in South Asian countries backed by some powerful organisations in the West with vested interests to destabilise regional peace between nations.

At a press conference in Colombo, Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic and Christian leaders-Co-chairs of Inter-religious Alliance for National Unity (IRANU), Ven. Galagama Dhammaransi, Hindu priest Brahmasri Ramachandra Kurukkal Babu Sharma, Rev Sarath Hettiarachchi and Moulavi Alhaj Hassan Moulana yesterday said Sunday’s blast on Mahabodhi temple in Bihar’s Bodhgaya, was a terrorist attempt to cause discord between India and Sri Lanka.

“We vehemently condemn this terrorist act just as much India has condemned it,” they said.

On being pointed out that the Indian Police suspect that the attack was carried out by a banned terrorist outfit called Indian Mujahiddin, Moulavi Hassan said if it was carried out by any such outfit with an Islamic religious name, they should be punished at once, because Islam does not teach a doctrine of attacking other religions or places of worship.

“Just because, they have a Muslim religious name and they may wear a head-cover (hijab), they are not to be considered Muslims if they commit acts of violence to harm other religions,” he said.

“They are terrorists trying to create social division by causing disharmony between religions. We request the Indian government to punish them if they had committed this terrorist serial blast,” Moulavi Hassan added.

“It is clear to us that the attack was carried out on Bodhgaya temple with an aim to break the bond of long-held historic friendship between Sri Lanka and India, to move towards a terrorist aim,” he said.

He said President Mahinda Rajapaksa at a function at a mosque said all types of extremism should be made Haram (proscribed) in the country and one’s love for the country should be promoted.

“This should take place not only in Sri Lanka but through the world on a global basis to achieve peace and national unity between nations,” he said.

Hindu priest Kurukkal Babu Sharma said the multiple blasts at the Mahabodhi temple, was a shameful act, that has threatened the co-existence of multiple communities in the Asian region.

Bodhgaya temple is the most important place of religious worship for Buddhist across the world. The attacks of this nature should be stopped by India by bringing to book the guilty, said Rev Sarath Hettiarachchi. Ven Galagama Dhammaransi thera said the attack on the birth place of the Buddha saddened the Buddhist community, but it did not arouse enmity against other religions.

The group that carried out this attack hoped to unleash hate against the Hindus. But it did not materialised by the power of the Dhamma, he said.

“We request the public not to go to Mahabodhi site on pilgrimage under the circumstances until the government of Sri Lanka, together with the government of India announces that the temple complex is safe for visiting by pilgrims. We are pleased that the government of India is taking measures to restore necessary conditions so that Buddhist public across the world can visit Bodhgaya in peace,” the thera added.