'Move out' if still against Ram temple consecration: RWA to Mani Shankar Aiyar, daughter
New Delhi, Jan 31: Taking umbrage at a protest fast by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's daughter Suranya Aiyar against the consecration ceremony at the Ayodhya Ram temple earlier this month, a residents' welfare association in south Delhi's Jangpura has suggested the father-daughter duo to leave the colony.
Aiyar in a video posted on Facebook, however, stated that she did not live in the colony represented by the RWA and that she did not receive any "notice" (letter) from it.
She said that it was decided by her to not to speak to the media over the issue for the moment.
Mani Shankar Aiyar, when contacted, refused to comment on it.
In a letter addressed to the Aiyars, Jangpura Extension Residents' Welfare Association president Kapil Kakkar said the association was approached by residents of the colony over her social media "stand/rant" and keeping fast from January 20-23.
It is the responsibility of an RWA to see that there is cordial relation between all the residents and "we do not appreciate a resident rant which may disturb the peace in the colony or hurt religious sentiments of the residents," read the letter dated January 27.
The "pran pratishtha" (consecration) ceremony of Ram Lalla was held in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the newly built Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.
The RWA accused Suranya of "hate speech" and requested her to follow the norms of a good citizen. It claimed the colony was inhabited by residents who came to India from Pakistan after partition.
Kakkar requested Mani Shankar Aiyar in the letter to "condemn" the act of his daughter, saying the RWA will highly appreciate it since it was not in good taste for the colony.
"In case you still think what you have done in protesting against the consecration (ceremony) of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya, we would suggest you to kindly move out to another colony...," Kakkar said in the letter.
He said the letter was sent to Mani Shankar Aiyar
Suranya in her Facebook video said, "First, the relevant Residents' Welfare Association is from a colony where I do not live! Secondly, I have decided for the moment not to speak to the media as right now." She also criticised the media of spreading "toxicity and confusion".
The 49-year-old said that she studied abroad and was involved with activism with people of all political backgrounds.
"I leave my work here on my Facebook and YouTube pages for you to think for yourselves. I am going to try and avoid a media circus as I believe that we all in India deserve better. Let us stop abusing each other and try some thinking instead. Jai Hind!" she said.
She said further that reasons for her disagreement were expressed by her in a previous speech (video). "I made a spiritual presentation of my own pain about this by fasting peacefully in my home," she stated.
"What matters is that whatever point of view we put forward, whether people are able to see some sense in it. And if at the end of the day, at the end of this process, in India, we can even just find a more civilised, a more thinking and a more sincere way of talking and feeling about these things, then we would have achieved something," she said.
Kakkar told PTI Video, "What kind of Hindu is she who is demeaning her own religion. We asked her to regret her provocative statements. We will not ignore it." He said that the RWA was awaiting the Aiyars' response.
Suranya in her video posted on YouTube on January 19, said, "With the forthcoming event in Ayodhya on January 22, the atmosphere here in Delhi...has thickened to a spiritually poisonous and unbreathable concentrate of Hindu chauvinism, malice and bullying." She said that she was deeply anguished as an Indian and a Hindu and after thinking hard decided to go on fast from January 20 to January 23.
"I am doing this first and foremost as an expression of my love and sorrow to my fellow Muslim 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 said.
Reacting to the development, the BJP said the action of the RWA should serve as a message to everyone who believes abusing Hindu beliefs is "par for the course".
The RWA has "asked Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and his daughter to apologise for defiling the Pran Pratistha ceremony at Ram Mandir, and leave the residential colony,” BJP IT department head Amit Malviya said in a post on X.
This should serve as a message for everyone, who think abusing Hindu beliefs is par for the course. The Jangpura Extension Welfare Association, in a terse letter, have asked Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and his daughter to apologise for defiling the Pran Pratistha ceremony… pic.twitter.com/6eQ0U1AmzW
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) January 31, 2024
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Dense fog disrupts operations at Delhi airport; 228 flights cancelled, 5 diverted
New Delhi (PTI): Dense fog disrupted flight operations at Delhi Airport on Monday, with various airlines cancelling 228 flights and diverting five to nearby airports due to low visibility, an official said.
However, except for Air India, which had in an X post in the morning announced the cancellation of some 40 flights, no other airlines, including crisis-hit IndiGo, shared the numbers of their cancelled or delayed flights.
"As many as 228 flights -- 131 departures and 97 arrivals-- have been cancelled due to low visibility, so far," the airport official said.
In addition to this, five flights have been diverted so far, he said.
Earlier, the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), in a statement, said, "Our on-ground officials are working closely with all stakeholders to assist passengers and provide necessary support across Terminals.
"Low visibility (below minima), due to dense fog, has severely impacted operations at Delhi and other airports across northern India, which is unfortunately beyond our control," IndiGo said in a statement.
As operations are adjusted to prevailing weather conditions, some flights may experience delays, while a few others may be proactively cancelled during the day to prioritise safety and minimise extended waiting at the airport, the airline said in a statement.
IndiGo, however, did not say how many of its flights were cancelled or delayed.
The airline said its teams are "closely monitoring" the situation and coordinating with Delhi airport.
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IndiGo also said it issued advisories to its customers and "proactively" informing them, to minimise inconvenience.
“Poor visibility due to dense fog in Delhi this morning has impacted flight operations for all airlines. We are closely monitoring conditions and will resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so,” Air India said in a post on X in the morning.
It also said that some flights have been cancelled In the interest of safety, and to avoid prolonged uncertainty for the guests, while listing out some 40 arrivals and departures that it had cancelled for the day.
Delhi airport is the country's busiest, handling around 1,300 flight movements daily.
