Hindu nationalist linked to pogrom deaths is arrested
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A fiery Hindu nationalist leader linked to the pogrom in the western state of Gujarat two years ago that killed hundreds of Muslims has been charged with sedition. If found guilty he could face life imprisonment.
Praveen Togadia was arrested in Ajmer, Rajasthan, the state bordering Gujarat to the north that is ruled by a Congress Party-led coalition. The Congress Party is the secularist adversary of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which governs both in Gujarat and at the centre in Delhi.
Mr Togadia is the demagogic spearhead of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) or World Hindu Council, one of the hardline militant branches of the Hindu nationalist movement of which the BJP is the political arm. The movement's main symbolic goal is the building of a temple to the Hindu god Ram in Ayodhya, on the ruins of a mosque torn down by Hindu fanatics 10 years ago. But its grand political aim is the creation of a "Hindu rashtra" in India, a state in which Hindus will rule unimpeded and the rest, notably Muslims and Christians, will be expected to bend the knee.
Mr Togadia was arrested after handing out short, sharpened tridents, a symbol of the god Shiva, at a rally on Sunday. He was charged with handling illegal weapons. But now the Rajasthan government has raised the charge to the far more serious one of sedition or "waging war or attempting anti-national activity". Another senior VHP leader, Giriraj Kishore, claimed that the more serious charge was brought merely to deny Mr Togadia bail.
Rajasthan's government fears that Mr Togadia and his colleagues intend to whip up the same sort of communal hatred in Rajasthan that served them so well in Gujarat. Though widely condemned, the pogrom in Gujarat served the the Hindu nationalist chief minister, Narendra Modi, very well, uniting an election-winning majority of the state's Hindus behind his communalist banner and securing him a second term in office.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments