NEW DELHI: The outlawed Vishwa Hindu Parishad has announced the formal launching of the movement to “liberate” the Kashi Vishwanath Temple at Varanasi on the eve of Mahashivrati, reports agencies.
The VHP joint secretary Acharya Giriraj Kishore told reporters that the movement was being launched under the banner of newly-created “Hindu Sangam” and cautioned the Center to transfer the Kashi Temple site to Hindus “before the movement takes an aggressive turn.”
Acharya Kishore claimed that on this issue there were no differences between the VHP and the Bharatiya Janata Party.
When reporters pointed out that BJP president L.K. Advani had said at a news conference that the Kashi and Mathura issues were not on the party’s agenda, Acharya said that “it is but natural for him to say so, till he comes to power at the center.”
The Acharya urged the Center to hand over to Hindus the Ayodhya Mathura and Kashi temples “at the earliest” and warned that any further delay on the issue would complicate the matter.
He, however, added that the Kashi movement would take recourse to peaceful and constitutional ways. Special arrangements are being made to ensure a peaceful celebration of Mahashivratri here in view of the Vishwa Hindu Parihad’s announcement to launch a movement to “liberate” the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. The District Magistrate and Senior Superintendent of Police told reporters that a watch was being kept on the anti-social elements and any attempt to disturb peace would be sternly dealt with.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 3, 1995
