Hindu groups are campaigning to stop property owners from installing ceramic tiles with images of deities and religious symbols on walls and other public areas.
The tiles are installed to prevent passersby from spitting or urinating on the walls and to stop them from leaving trash, but groups like Hindu Vahini said the images are being misused. It is not just images of Hindu deities that are used to stop bad civic behaviour; symbols and images of religious figures from other faiths are similarly installed on walls.
Recently, Bajrang Dal asked occupants of Nand Kishore building, Shanti Nagar, Andheri, to remove tiles with images of deities from the building's staircase. Gautam Ravaria, co-convenor of the Konkan chapter of Bajrang Dal, said that images of Hindu deities were installed on the outer wall at St Dominic Savio School,. "The Bajrang Dal team, under the Vishva Hindu Parishad, safely removed the images of the deities and immersed them in water with reverence," said Ravaria. The school did not respond to calls for a statement. The Bajrang Dal team, under the Vishva Hindu Parishad, safely removed the images of the deities and immersed them in water.
In the latest case, tiles with images of deities were stuck to a wall of a bungalow in Vile Parle, apparently belonging to the owner of a biscuit company. Yogesh Bobhate of Hindu Vahini said he visited the bungalow along with workers of Shri Ram Sena.
"I met the security in charge and, after discussing with him, decided to write a letter to the owner of the company. If in the coming week they do not remove these tiles of the deity, then Hindu Vahini will protest and remove these tiles themselves," said Bobhate.
No police complaints have been filed in the cases. In these cases, the Bajrang Dal wrote letters to the property owners asking them to remove the tiles on their own or face prosecution under Section 299 of the Bharatiya Nyay Samhita, safeguarding religious harmony by penalising deliberate insults, including signs and visual representations, to any religion or its beliefs.
"This is a disrespectful use of the images. Usually, the owners of the property respond to our letters and remove the tiles. If they do not respond, we will go to the police," said Ravaria.
