Dr S Q R Ilyas, head of the BMAC and a senior member of the board, feels that the Sangh Parivar should not have raked up the Ram temple issue. In a candid chat with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, Dr Ilyas said the recent proclamation by the RSS, VHP and BJP was a desperate measure to rake up the issue of Hindutva once again
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday backed the BVishwa Hindu parishad's resolution for building a Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying its construction is like establishing the 'Indian identity'.
Veteran Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Ashok Singhal has been replaced as the international president of the organisation while its general secretary Pravin Togadia was given a greater responsibility.
Continuing to back Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as the prime ministerial candidate of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Ashok Singhal on Sunday said there was lot of support for him in the country. "Modi is the hero of the Hindus. That's why his name is being taken by the Hindus. What's wrong in him leading the country," Singhal asked.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad will declare Gujarat a "Hindu state" by 2015 besides having its presence in all 18,000 villages of the state in the next two years, the outfit's leader Pravin Togadia claimed.
The country needs to form a pro-Hindu Parliament which is strong enough to protect the rights of Hindus instead of a government which works against the interest of the community, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad has said. "We want a Parliament which can protect the rights of Hindus and the next 2014 general elections will be on this line," VHP leader Ashok Singhal said.
VHP has cancelled its 18-day 'Chaturved Swahakar Yajna' that was scheduled to start from Monday.
For relatives of many kar sevaks who were killed in the Sabarmati Express coach fire incident in Gujarat's Godhra in 2002, the 'bhoomi pujan' for a Ram temple in Ayodhya on Wednesday brought a sense of closure to the pains of losing their near and dear ones for the cause of the temple.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad has too decided against observing the 27th anniversary of the demolition as "Shaurya Diwas".
Asserting the Ram Janmabhoomi dispute could be resolved only by Parliament and not by a court of law, the Vishwa Hindu Parishand today said it would initiate efforts at the Maha Kumbh in Allahabad to ensure that those sensitive towards the sentiments of Hindus were elected to it in a large number.
Before the possible arrival of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to New Delhi ahead of the 2014 general election, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh have decided to rake up the Ayodhya Ram Mandir issue again.
At least 600 pilgrims traveling to the Amarnath shrine, led by Vishwa Hindu Parishad workers, on Sunday courted arrest after they were prevented from proceeding towards the hill shrine by the state administration. The date of the yatra was fixed on June 25 by the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board. But the pilgrims tried to start the yatra from Sunday, defying the prohibitory orders clamped to deter them.
Modi's presence at the evnt would open wounds, the Hyderabad MP said.
After the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a Muslim outfit on Saturday protested the shooting of Kathryn Bigelow's film on Osama bin Laden in Chandigarh. The movie is based on the killing of the Al Qaeda leader in Abbottabad (Pakistan). The outfit alleged that shooting of the film will disturb the peaceful atmosphere between the communities in a secular country.
The proclamations came after various Hindu organisations in the US announced the addition of another major festival, an entire month of festivals, in October as the Hindu Heritage Month.
A case has been registered at the Kotwali police station on a complaint filed by the Trust's secretary and Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Champat Rai, a senior police official said.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad has sought a ban on the upcoming Kamal Hassan Tamil flick 'Uttama Villain', claiming it would offend the religious sensibilities of Hindus.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Tuesday asked Art of Living founder and Shri Amarnath Shrine Board member, Sri Sri Ravishankar, to keep away from the "boiling issue" of curtailment of Amarnath yatra, saying otherwise he will "burn his hands"
Normal life disrupted in Assam during a statewide bandh called by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad.
The crisis over the start date of the Amarnath Yatra deepened with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad showing no signs of relenting and a top VHP leader on Tuesday stating that Bharatiya Janata Party leader Uma Bharti will lead a contingent of devotees to the cave shrine on June 3. The board has left sadhus all across India angry by disobeying him, he added.
The police on Sunday detained 53 Bajrang Dal activists after foiling their bid to move towards Baltal base camp of Amarnath cave shrine in Kashmir, ahead of the commencement of the annual pilgrimage in June. Flagged off by Vishwa Hindu Parishad state chief Rama Kant Dubey from Jammu city, a group of 150 members boarded two buses and left for Kashmir Valley. They were intercepted by the police on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway at Jajjarkotli, 35 km from Jammu.
The Gujarat high court on Monday rejected the Special Investigation Team's plea seeking cancellation of bail of Babu Bajrangi, former Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader and an accused in the 2002 Naroda Patiya and Naroda Gam riot cases. The petition by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team, filed in August last year, was rejected by Justice R H Shukla.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Friday criticised Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh for his recent remarks on yoga guru Baba Ramdev, asking him to come clean on the source of funding for his activities. "The Congress party has never acknowledged the contributions of Hindu saints towards preserving the nation's moral fabric. Digvijay Singh's recent remarks against Baba Ramdev are yet another instance of showing disrespect to Hindu saints and their contributions," he said.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Tuesday gave its support to Anna Hazare's campaign against corruption but said it was involved in the movement "only as patriots".
Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Praveen Togadia on Tuesday said the welcome of Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari before the extradition of Mumbai terror attack accused Hafiz Saeed was a "matter of shame" and the Centre it seemed was taking it up only as a diplomatic issue.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Thursday said its volunteers were active in Gandhian Anna Hazare's movement against corruption in Delhi last year.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Thursday refused to accept the date fixed by Shri Amarnath Shrine Board for the annual pilgrimage to the cave temple in south Kashmir Himalayas, saying the yatra this year will commence on June 4 for which it will begin registering pilgrims from Friday.
In the wake of the killing of three Hindus in Sindh province in Pakistan, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Friday asked India to take up the issue of the security of the minority community with officials in Islamabad. "We demand protection of minority Hindus in Pakistan where they have been subjected to repeated attacks. Human rights organisations across the world and the Indian government should seek an explanation from the Pakistan premier about the repeated killings," he said.
Gulbarg massacre: This is where my father died
Security has been stepped up in the city and Godhra town in wake of the 10th anniversary of the Sabarmati Express train carnage, which killed 59 people and triggered large-scale communal violence in many parts of Gujarat in 2002 claiming over 1200 lives.
The 10th anniversary of Godhra train carnage, which left 59 karsevaks dead and triggered one of worst communal riots in Gujarat that claimed the lives of over 1200 Muslims, will be marked today by a slew of events with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad taking out a rally and Non-Governmental Organisations coming together to demand justice for the riot victims.
He directed the centre to take prompt action to clear mud from there and provide better living conditions.
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.
In an exclusive interview with rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, RSS's executive council member Ram Madhav emphasised on using the judgement for strengthening national integrity but avoided agreeing to building a mosque and a temple at the same site.
In Washington, VHP members took out a tableau truck on Tuesday with the digital image of Ram temple, and went around the Capitol Hill with chanting of slogans "Jai Shree Ram" and moving around the city later.
However, Yadav clarified later that his comment was meant to be a joke.
The Allahabad high court on Thursday directed recording of evidence on a day-to-day basis by the Rae Bareli trial court in the Babri Masjid demolition case, rejecting a plea by a Vishwa Hindu Party leader.
Even as the 19th anniversary of the demolition of Babri Mosque in Ayodhya on Tuesday remained a non-event, what came as a pleasant surprise was the message of peace and communal amity from none other than Babri Masjid Action Committee.
A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices D Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant also issued a notice to the Agartala police on the plea filed by advocates, Mukesh and Ansarul Haq, and journalist Shyam Meera Singh against lodging of the FIR.
Senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party made it clear that the party does not subscribe to the views expressed by Dr Pravin Togadia, International general secretary of Vishwa Hindu Parishad, who said at Ahmedabad that those who convert Hindus should be beheaded. Surprisingly, none of them were willing to go on record.
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