Singhal plans front against NLFT

AGARTALA, March 8: The Sanathan Dharma Parishad, an affiliate of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, will form Dharma Suraksha Samiti units in Tripura to protect tribal and non-tribal Hindus from persecution by the National Liberation Front of Twipra. Stating this at a news conference here today, VHP international president Ashok Singhal said the units would comprise about 15 "unarmed volunteers" each. They would be engaged in the task of protecting Hindus in a peaceful and non-violent way, he said. Replying to a question, he said the VHP would launch its reconversion drive in the Northeast also as in other parts of the country. Singhal said over the past several years, sadhus in Tripura had been at the receiving end of religious militancy in the state. He referred to the killing of Hindu tribal leader Shanti Kumar Tripura at his ashram near Khumlung under Jirania police station on August 27 last year by the NLFT. He added that Tripura had been warned against preaching Hinduism and was asked to convert to Christianity along with his disciples. The VHP would work for the uplift of the impoverished tribal and non-tribal Hindus, he said. "We already have a large network to render service to the people and this will be further expanded," he said. He also referred to similar persecution of Hindus in other countries. "The Hindu philosophy and view of life is based on universal laws of science and nature," he added. Singhal said the British rulers had deliberately prevented the tribal people of the Northeast from mingling with the mainstream by enforcing the inner-line permit and other regulations. The VHP and its sister organisations were working freely in these states now and had received a good response from the people, he said. Regarding insurgency in the Northeast, he said sooner or later, terrorism would invariably come to an end. Citing the example of Punjab, he said there was a time when people thought that Punjab would be lost to the militants. "But the turnaround did come and there is no terrorism in Punjab now," he added. Regarding the reported killing of the four RSS pracharaks, he said, "We still have no confirmation of their death. Hence, I appeal to the militants to free them. It will be good for all." Singhal also said the VHP and other outfits of the Sangh Parivar had put pressure on the Union government on the issue, "but so far the Centre has also not been able to progress on this because of unavoidable circumstances". Replying to another question, he said as per the decision of the "dharma sansad" during "Kumbh Mela", the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya would "commence on an auspicious date after Shivratri next year". He criticised Imam Ahmed Bukhari's statement that equated the Taliban's depredations with the destruction of "Babri Mosque" and termed it as "uncalled for and insignificant". Earlier, Singhal and a host of Hindu sannyasis including Mahant Avaidyanath, Swami Chinmoyananda and Jamatya hoda okra (head priest and community leader) Bikram Bahadur Jamatya addressed a huge rally here. A large number of tribal Hindus from different parts of the state attended the meeting.