Why did ‘Jinnah Tower’ need a security fence in India?

In the city of Guntur in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, India, the work of installing an iron fence around the Jinnah Tower has been going on for the past few days, while according to the local authorities, the installation of additional CCTV cameras has been completed.

A temporary police post has also been set up near the 80-year-old Jinnah Tower, attributed to the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, where police personnel are not only preventing people from going near the tower, but also moving passers-by. The movement is closely monitored.

The local administration of Guntur has had to take these safety measures in the context of the Hindu nationalist party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s threat that ‘if the name is not changed, we will demolish this tower’.

In fact, recently, BJP National Secretary Y Sathya Kumar tweeted a picture of Jinnah Tower, sparking a debate that was not limited to social media.

Along with the picture, he wrote: ‘This tower is named after Jinnah and this area is called Jinnah Centre. Ironically, it is not Pakistan but Guntur, a city in Andhra Pradesh. This center is still associated with India’s traitors. Why should it not be named after Dr. Kalam (Abdul Kalam) or after the great Dalit poet Gururam Joshua, the son of this land?’

Y. Sathya Kumar also shared a December 2017 tweet from the official Twitter handle of the Government of Pakistan, describing the tower as a symbol of peace and harmony.

The tweet said: ‘Jinnah Tower in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh is a historical monument. It is named after the Father of the Nation of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah and is located on Mahatma Gandhi Road in the city. It is a symbol of peace and harmony.’

After Vaisath Kumar, Andhra Pradesh BJP president Somoveer Raju and general secretary Vishnuvardhan Reddy also made statements against Jinnah Tower and threatened to demolish it if the name was not changed.

Guntur-based journalist Raghavana told Independent Urdu: ‘After threats from BJP leaders, the Jaganmohan Reddy-led YSR Congress Party government in Andhra Pradesh chose to protect Jinnah Tower instead of renaming it. What has been decided.’

‘The place where this tower is located in Guntur city is the busiest market where every single thing is sold.’

After the BJP leaders’ statements, Guntur Municipal Corporation Mayor Manohar Naidu and senior police officers visited the site.

“Mayor Manohar Naidu told us (to reporters) that Jinnah Tower is a symbol of freedom movement and Hindu-Muslim unity, so its name will not be changed. He also told us that the BJP is trying to disrupt the communal harmony of the city.’

Raghav Anna said: ‘To protect Jannah Tower from any ‘mischief’ by the BJP, a 10-feet high iron fence is being erected around it, along with increased police presence and CCTV cameras. Is.

‘There was a small empty space around the Jinnah Tower where people used to sit and rest for a while, but now no one is allowed to go near the tower. The vacant lot is now within the fence.’

History of Jinnah Tower

This tower was constructed in 1942 by the then MLA Sheikh Muhammad Lal Jan alias SM Lal Jan at his own expense.

SM Ziauddin, the grandson of SM Laljan, has recently been appointed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh as a consultant in the Ministry of Minority Affairs.

In a conversation with Independent Urdu, he described the history of Jinnah Tower as follows: ‘This is an incident of the year 1942. In Guntur’s Constituency Sattanapally’s Kumira Puri village, the British fought Hindus and Muslims.

A local resident belonging to Hindu religion was killed in this fight. When the matter reached the court, 14 Muslims were sentenced to death. At that time my grandfather SM Lal Jan was a member of the Muslim League assembly. He was a favorite worker of Jinnah Sahib.

Lal Jan Sahib went to Bombay (Mumbai) with a delegation from here. There, Jinnah Sahib was given the full details of the incident and convinced him to fight the case of these 14 Muslims. Jinnah fought the case in the Bombay High Court and succeeded in commuting the death sentence to a term of imprisonment.

‘Lal Jan and the people of Guntur were so happy that they decided that we will build a minar to remember Jinnah forever. My grandfather built this minaret at his own expense, which he named Jinnah Tower.’

‘When Jinnah Tower was ready, a joint delegation of Hindus and Muslims led by my grandfather went to Bombay to meet Jinnah Sahib and invited him to come to Guntur to inaugurate the minar. Jinnah told the delegation that if there were no unavoidable engagements, I would certainly come, but on the appointed date he was engaged in some other important work in connection with the Indian Independence Movement. He sent a letter to Liaquat Ali Khan as his representative to Guntur. On the occasion of inaugurating the Minar, he also read out Jinnah’s letter in which he apologizes for not coming to Guntur.

A large number of Hindus and Muslims of Guntur participated in the opening ceremony. Since then the Jinnah Tower has stood in its place and both (Hindus and Muslims) have a deep emotional attachment to it.’

Bashir Ahmed is the president of the Indian Union Muslim League and a High Court lawyer in Andhra Pradesh.

He told Independent Urdu that ‘it is true that this minar was built by SM Lal Jan himself.’

The history of this tower is not recorded in any book. Two different statements regarding this are in the public domain. One statement is that the British had sentenced 18 Muslims to death for participating in the freedom movement, while the other statement is that the Muslims killed a Hindu.

But the second statement seems unauthentic to me because Hindus and Muslims have been living here with great love. Jinnah Sahib fighting and winning the case of Muslims in the Bombay court is an incident which is based on reality.

Syed Naseer Ahmad, a renowned historian from Guntur, told Independent Urdu that Jinnah Tower is the heart and center of Guntur city.

‘I don’t have any documents regarding the history of this minar. It is an ordinary minaret but very famous. Every resident of Guntur city knows this place as Jinnah Tower. You ask anyone in Guntur that I want to go to Jinnah Tower and they will tell you the way to get there.’

“Everyone here opposed the BJP’s demand and strongly condemned it. People here say that this is Jinnah Tower and it will remain Jinnah Tower. Throughout South India, Hindus and Muslims live like brothers.’

Respect for Jinnah and ‘Jinnah Tower’

Bashir Ahmad says that not only in Guntur but across Andhra Pradesh, a large number of people revere Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Jinnah Tower attributed to him.

‘This tower has become a part of civilization and culture not only of Guntur but of entire Andhra Pradesh. Almost everyone in Andhra Pradesh knows that Jinnah Tower is in Guntur.’

Bashir Ahmad said that for decades, the local municipal corporation has been responsible for the maintenance of Jinnah Tower and no one had objected to the name of the tower before the recent statements by BJP leaders.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah was a great freedom fighter. He fought for the freedom of India. On the contrary, the RSS has no role in the Azadi movement. The ideologue of this organization, Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar, wrote an open letter in which he appealed to the people of India not to participate in the freedom movement.

“I recently met the municipal commissioner and the district police chief. I suggest that a painting of the Indian flag i.e. the tricolor should be made on the Jinnah Tower. After that there will be no conflict. I will also meet with the Mayor regarding this proposal. If they don’t want to do it, we are ready to do it.’

YSR Congress Party MLA from Guntur East Muhammad Mustafa Shaikh told Independent Urdu that the local Hindus of the city have no objection to the Jinnah Tower.

“People of Guntur don’t care about BJP at all. Their statements are not given any importance at all. Hindus and Muslims are brothers here. There is no fight in the name of religion in my city.

“Both Hindus and Muslims voted for me. There is no Hindu-Muslim politics here. For me both are equal.

In this era of corona (corona) epidemic, it is also the duty of BJP to provide relief to the people. On the contrary, the leaders associated with this party are engaged in the politics of changing the name of every place.