The central committee of the banned Communist Party of India - Maoist had decided to eliminate Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Laxmananda Saraswati as he was opposing them in Kandhamal, according to the confessions of an arrested Maoist commander, who was allegedly involved in the killing in August last year.P Rama Rao alias Uday, arrested on April 20 from Raygada district, told interrogators that he was part of the 16-member Maoist team that gunned down Saraswati.
VHP leader says that the ghar wapsis will continue till 15 crore people are reconverted.
Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane has sparked controversy by claiming that Muslims did not vote for the BJP-led government and warning against disrespecting Hindu deities. His remarks follow tensions over alleged desecration of a Durga idol and previous controversial statements about Muslim voters.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Acharya Dharmendra warned the Madhya Pradesh government that unless criminal cases filed against Bhojshala devotees since 2006 were withdrawn "unconditionally" by March 9, religious leaders would take nationwide action.
Allahabad High Court judge Justice Shekhar Yadav, who was embroiled in controversy for his speech at a VHP event in December, has opted out of a seminar on the Ram temple movement in the Kumbh Mela area on January 22. Yadav was scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the seminar, which is being held to mark the first anniversary of the consecration ceremony of Lord Ram Lalla in the Ayodhya temple.
"We agree with the Supreme Court that this matter is complicated and this requires a serious and experienced judge. Court has said the district court will look into it. We agree with the Supreme Court," he said.
Award-winning Tamil lyricist Vairamuthu's recent remarks on Lord Ram have sparked controversy, drawing condemnation from the BJP and VHP.
The Gujarat unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Tuesday withdrew its protest against Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Pathaan, a day before its release, expressing satisfaction over the removal of 'objectionable' contents from the film.
New BJP President L K Advani could not attend due to other urgent engagements
Three Bihar ministers have threatened to take action if VHP leader Pravin Togadia delivers a 'hate speech' in Patna.
This came after police said it has registered a first information report (FIR) against the organisers for taking out the procession without permission, and arrested a person, identified as Prem Sharma, who is a local VHP leader.
A delegation representing the Ram Temple Trust on Friday called on President Droupadi Murmu and formally invited her to attend the consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22.
The cyber police in Nagpur have booked local leader Fahim Khan and five others on charges of sedition and spreading misinformation on social media during the violence that erupted in the city on Monday. The department has also sought information from Facebook, X, Instagram, and YouTube authorities about 230 profiles and requested their blocking.
Minority Democratic Party (MDP) leader Fahim Khan has been arrested in connection with the violence that erupted in Nagpur on Monday after Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) workers staged an agitation for the removal of Aurangzeb's tomb. Khan's name is mentioned in one of six FIRs registered so far, along with 50 others. Police are investigating whether Khan played any role in instigating the riots. Khan, along with eight others, had allegedly gathered outside a police station and submitted a memorandum against the VHP's protest. Subsequently, he went to another area where a large group of people from a minority community had gathered. Police are searching for those named in the FIRs and are investigating whether the accused had any role in planning the violence. The violence erupted amid rumors that a 'chadar' with holy inscriptions was burnt during the VHP's protest.
Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav, an Allahabad High Court judge, is set to appear before the Supreme Court Collegium to explain his controversial statements made at a Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) function. The Supreme Court has sought a report from the Allahabad High Court after news reports surfaced regarding Justice Yadav's remarks, which were widely condemned as "hate speech". The judge's statements, made at a VHP event, sparked outrage from various quarters, including opposition leaders and lawyers. The Bar Association of India has also condemned the judge's remarks and called for an apology.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Sunday inaugurated its controversial yatra from Ayodhya amidst a massive crackdown launched by the Uttar Pradesh administration which has arrested senior VHP leaders Ashok Singhal and Praveen Togadia, and over 500 people.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Monday said that construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya is on its agenda.
The BJP and its senior leader L K Advani may have closed the chapter on the Jinnah controversy, but for the VHP, a key member of the Sangh Parivar, the issue is not yet "clear". "Things have to be made clearer by him (Advani)," senior VHP leader Ashok Singhal said on Thursday.
The twin towns of Ayodhya and Faizabad were on the edge on Saturday as tension mounted on the eve of VHP's yatra with the UP government cracking down on the saffron outfit arresting some of its leaders and over 350 activists.
The VHP leaders presented a memorandum to the President, seeking an immediate ban on the conversion activities of Christian missionaries and foreign funds to these organisations. They also demanded a thorough scrutiny of the accounts of these Christian missionaries and urged the President to ensure that no foreigner is allowed to practice religious conversion in the country.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad on Wednesday raised objections to the portrayal of Lord Ram, Lakshman and Ravana in the teaser of Adipurush, claiming that it 'ridiculed Hindu society'.
Terming Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik as 'anti-Hindu', the VHP today said it would launch a statewide campign to generate awareness on the necessity to protect Hindu religion.
The day-long bandh has been called by the VHP to give vent to the feelings of Hindus over the unjust arrest of the Kanchi seer.
Amid raging controversy over conversion in the country, a batch of 30 persons belonging to eight families of Scheduled Caste Christians were re-coverted to Hinduism under the auspices of Vishwa Hindu Parishad in the district on Sunday.
VHP international president Vishnu Sadashiv Kokje said there is enthusiasm among Hindus across the world over the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Ram temple.
A group of men from West Bengal were handed over to the police by Vishwa Hindu Parishad members in Shahjahanpur for allegedly offering namaaz on the roadside.
Advani's parikarma plans, however, have received support from the RSS, with its leader Suresh Soni saying the Sangh may consider joining him.
In the last 11 years, India and the world witnessed what he stood for, what he promised and did not deliver, and what he actually stood for and practised without fearing how history would judge him. Modi's tenure has been punctuated with headline-grabbing decisions, symbolic gestures, and stage-managed moments that continue to define his leadership and India's politics, points out Ramesh Menon.
Top VHP leaders, including Ashok Singhal, Pravin Togadia and Giriraj Kishore, have already in Kolkata for the event.
In the Marxists-ruled Kerala, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad Kerala chapter has launched a helpline offering assistance to "Hindus in distress". Named Shivaji Hindu Helpline, the service particularly offers "help for Hindu girls who are being lured into what they call the trap of "love-jihad".
The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested Gujarat police officer G L Singhal in connection with the alleged fake encounter of 19-year old student Ishrat Jahan by a team of Ahmedabad crime branch officers in 2004.
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Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Pravin Togadia on Tuesday said the outfit's controversial yatra would continue as planned.
VHP leader Pravin Togadia told a dharam sansad in Delhi that this will help restore the honour of the 'Hindu rashtra'.
Activists of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal staged a demonstration in New Delhi on Saturday against the ban on their leader Praveen Togadia's visit to Orissa's Kandhamal district. The Orissa government has imposed a ban on VHP leader Togadia from entering the communally sensitive Kandhamal district."The state government didn't stop foreign missionaries from going to tribal areas of Kandhamal and other parts of Orissa," said a VHP leader.
The VHP will put up boards in various places all over the country declaring India a Hindu Rashtra.
Speaking to reporters, VHP national general secretary Milind Parande also said the construction of the temple will take a little time but the 'garbhagriha' (sanctum sanctorum) will be in place by December 2023 with starting of puja ritual and darshan for devotees.
Charging the Centre with appeasing minorities for electoral gains, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Saturday called for a nationwide agitation to highlight the 'oppression of Hindus'."On one hand, the government is not executing death sentence to Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and on the other it is torturing an innocent person like Sadhvi Pragya Singh, who has been falsely implicated in the Malegaon blast case," VHP leader Venkatesh Abdev said.
Advani met RSS chief K Sudarshan and VHP leaders Ashok Singhal and Parveen Togadia to discuss current political situation in the country. At least 15 top leaders of the RSS and the VHP were also present.
