RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat courts controversy through his statement again. The Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti (AKSS) objected to RSS chief’s remarks that there is “an unacceptable trend of wannabe Hindu leaders raking up temple-mosque disputes at various sites”. Samiti General Secretary Swami Jitendranand Saraswati said that the temple-mosque issue is religious and should be decided by ‘dharmacharyas’ (religious leaders) and not by Bhagwat. “Whenever any subject related to religion is raised, it is decided by religious gurus,” he said.
Drive to free temples from govt’s control
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad is set start a campaign from January 5 to liberate the temples from government control. VHP international president Alok Kumar said the meeting in Vijayawada, christened as ‘Hindava Shankavaram’ will be attended by scores of seers, VHP and the RSS members. VHP would hand over memorandums to all CMs besides organising sabhas across the country to ramp up public support for the cause. A committee has also been constituted to frame the broader guidelines for getting the temples freed from the government control.
Mahakumbh tableau for Republic Day parade
Uttar Pradesh’s tableau themed ‘Virasat Evam Vikas’ showcasing Prayagraj Mahakumbh-2025 has been selected for the Republic Day parade in Delhi. The state has received confirmation from the Centre. UP’s tableau was selected among 15 states after sailing through three to four rounds. The preparation will start from December 25. Other states that qualified are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Goa, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Tripura, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, and the union territories of Chandigarh and Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
Namita bajpai
Our correspondent in Uttar Pradesh
namita.bajpai@newindianexpress.com