The consecration ceremony for the idol of Lord Ram is set to take place at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya on January 22, 2024. The whole country is excited and ready for big celebrations similar to Diwali. Hindu communities all throughout the world are also remembering the sacrifices made by committed karsevaks who gave their lives to defend the Ram temple. Ram Achal Gupta is one of these renowned people, whose unselfish effort is honoured.
Ram Achal Gupta, who was shot to death on November 2, 1990, near Ramjanmabhoomi, was a resident of the Rudauli police station area in the Ayodhya district. This terrible incident happened when the police opened fire on the karsevaks on orders from Mulayam Singh Yadav, the father of Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party and the then-chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. OpIndia visited Ram Achal Gupta’s home in order to learn more about the situation as it stands.
The Gupta family makes their living by operating a grocery business.
Ram Achal Gupta’s family resides in Shujaganj Bazar, which is close to the Lucknow-Ayodhya road. They own a grocery store called Sanjay Grocery Store to support themselves. Ram Achal, who died at the young age of 26, left behind a daughter and two kids. At the moment, each of them is married.
Ram Achal Gupta’s wife, Rajkumari Gupta, is currently 55 years old. After her husband’s untimely death, Rajkumari assumed parental duties over their children. The youngsters spent a large amount of their schooling at their mother’s house. The son of Ram Achal Gupta, Sanjay Gupta, claims that he experienced extreme poverty and hardship throughout his early years.
Ram Achal Gupta joined the RSS as a young child
Ram Achal Gupta’s son Sanjay Gupta told OpIndia that his father had been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since he was a young boy. The Sangh shakha used to draw visitors from a great distance. According to family relatives, Ram Achal was particularly involved in the Rath Yatra that senior BJP leader LK Advani started.
At that time, Ram Achal Gupta owned a paan store at Rudauli Bazar, which was around 5 miles away from his home. At an early age, Ram Achal married Rajkumari Gupta, who lived in the Khandsa neighbourhood of Ayodhya. Sanjay, his son, claims that Ram Achal never prioritised his family over Dharma.
The Karsevaks were rounded up by police in Darshan’s name, and they were later fatally shot.
Ramtej, the brother of Ram Achal, narrated how he went to Karseva with his brother on October 28, 1990. Many people from nearby villages were present at this gathering of karsevaks. At first, they fed the pilgrimage Ram enthusiasts and made lodging arrangements for them to sleep in. Later, Ram Achal and his friends drove through fields to Ayodhya in order to avoid the police officers positioned on the main road.
Even after a number of karsevaks were shot by police in Ayodhya on October 30, 1990, Ram Achal Gupta refused to give up and decided not to go back home. Ram Achal’s brother, Ramtej Gupta, revealed that he and his brother gathered at the Maniram Das cantonment in Ayodhya on November 2, 1990. Thousands of karsevaks from all around the nation had already gathered at this spot.
When officers and administration representatives showed up at their location, according to Ramtej Gupta, an agreement was struck that all of the karsevaks would be permitted to see the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi before being returned home. After this arrangement, groups of karsevaks started to leave from different locations and make their way under strict protection towards the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi. On their way to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi, these groups were stopped and intercepted by the police at several sites.
Thinking back on what had happened, Ramtej said that he and his brother Ram Achal’s group had been stopped close to the Bada Post Office, which is only a half-kilometer from Hanuman Garhi. The karsevaks, frustrated by the disruption, started to sing Ram bhajans while sitting on the road as a peaceful form of protest. There were two police contingents on the site during this nonviolent protest. The two had guns in their hands, while one had batons.
Ramtej recounted an abrupt turn of events in which the cops attacked the karsevaks who were singing bhajans, without giving them any prior notice. A lathi charge rapidly turned into gunfire, which set off a frenzied stampede. Ramtej discovered that he was apart from his brother, Ram Achal, during this chaos. Everything was in disarray, and the police used extreme force.
Ramtej Gupta revealed the tumultuous scene during the stampede in his eyewitness testimony. He saw karsevaks carrying the dead bodies of their fellow devotees as they desperately rushed through the chaos, hailing from all across the country. Tear gas rounds were fired, adding to the already intense atmosphere and filling the space with billowing smoke. Bullets were fired sporadically throughout this commotion, knocking karsevaks to the ground.
Ram Achal Gupta’s corpse was kept with the Kothari brothers
Ramtej Gupta revealed in an interview with OpIndia that he still felt angry thinking back on the turbulent times in the past. He described the heartbreaking experience of looking for his brother after the stampede had passed only to discover him missing, despite his emotional collapse. Eventually, Maniramdas Cantonment published a statement confirming the heartbreaking tidings that his brother Ram had given his life.
Ramtej Gupta continued his story by saying that he found Ram Achal Gupta’s dead body near Maniramdas cantonment while searching for his brother’s body. The bodies of about six other karsevaks, including the Kothari brothers, were lying beside his brother. Sadly, Ram Achal Gupta passed away from a chest gunshot wound.
When SDM saw the dead body, she sobbed and touched the feet.
Those close to Ram Achal Gupta from the Shujaganj market who went to get his body stated that in response to Mulayam Singh Yadav’s remark that “not even a bird should flutter in Ayodhya,” the government has tightened its regulations. But these folks received a lot of assistance from Vishal Rai, the Deputy District Magistrate (SDM) assigned to Rudauli. He had prepared passes for those who went to pick up the body.
The SDM was present during the cremation of Balidani’s body when it arrived in Shujaganj, according to those who delivered the body of Ram Achal. Before being cremated, some claimed that SDM Vishal Rai had caressed Ram Achal’s feet and sobbed deeply during this time. Vishal Rai joined the administrative service after retiring from the Army. Vishal Rai is currently retired.
Samadhi constructed at the cremation site
In front of the house is a large temple that the Ram Achal Gupta family constructed in a mythical location. To protect this shrine from the land mafia, his family has waged a protracted war. Within the precincts of this temple, Ram Achal was cremated. In addition to the police and administrative officers, there were numerous saints and representatives of Hindu organisations in attendance. Where Ram Achal Gupta was cremated, a samadhi and memorial have been constructed. Family members claim that this memorial motivates Hindus in the area to struggle for Dharma.
Threats with bombs to the Samadhi
The family of Ram Achal states that approximately ten years prior, they had been threatened by the terrorist group SIMI (Students Islamic Movement of India). Pamphlets were thrown into the temple close to the Samadhi, posing a threat. “We will bomb this place” was written on the leaflet. Sanjay Gupta claims that after complaining to the police, the Hindu community in the area voiced their disapproval of the threat. But in this instance, the cops were unable to make any arrests.
Respect should be shown for Ram Achal Gupta’s sacrifice, and unfulfilled pledges should be fulfilled.
The late Ram Achal’s son, Sanjay Gupta, informed us that the BJP had given his mother a ticket to become an MLA after his father was killed. However, the family later declined it because they were in a grieving state. Sanjay added that the leaders in attendance at his father’s funeral declared that the community will henceforth be known as Ram Achal Nagar instead of Shujaganj.
Sanjay Gupta also informed us that the announcement has not yet been put into practice. In honour of Shuja-ud-Daula, the erstwhile Nawab of Awadh, Shujaganj was named. It is stated that Shuja-ud-Daula used to travel via this location on his way from Lucknow to Faizabad, or modern-day Ayodhya. It was renamed Shujaganj later on.
The family of Ram Achal Gupta also desires that a memorial to those who gave their lives at Karseva be constructed in Ayodhya. Sanjay Gupta expressed his delight in his father’s involvement in the construction of the Ram temple and expressed his happiness with the project’s progress. The family still makes frequent trips to Ayodhya.
