After he was denied permission to hold a ‘Dharam Sansad’ in Haridwar, controversial Hindu priest Yati Narsinghanand made a hate speech against Muslims at another event in the city on December 20. Police say they are looking into the contents of the purported speech, the video of which is circulating.
‘Dharam Sansad’, a three-day event, was scheduled from December 19 to 21 but the district administration denied the permission at the designated place. Following this, the organisers held the event at an ‘akhara’ on December 20. The said event, organized by Yati Narasinghanand, was marked by a series of hate speeches that incited violence and targeted the Muslim community.
Haridwar SSP Pramendra Dobhal said they have accessed the 15-minute video and are checking if any objectionable comments were made. “The video going viral on social media is a minute long, but we are checking the entire footage to see if he has said anything objectionable. If hate speech is found, we will take appropriate action,” he added.
During this event, he called for the “destruction” of individuals who had hindered the original programme. Addressing a gathering of followers, he declared, “The biggest reason for the misery of us Hindus is that we do not have a country of our own,” reiterating his demand for a Hindu Rashtra. Narsinghanand further said about his vision of a “Sanatan Vedic Nation,” one that, according to him, would have “no room for a single mosque, a single madrasa, or a single jihadi.” Drawing a comparison with Israel’s “protective” stance towards Jews, he claimed that such a nation would serve as a global guardian for Hindus.
At the said event in Haridwar, several other speakers joined Yati Narsinghanand in delivering speeches laced with Islamophobia.
On December 20, the Uttarakhand HC asked the district police to ensure law and order and reiterated the Supreme Court’s directions in Shaheen Abdullah v. State, emphasising that state authorities must act suo-motu to address any hate speech targeting religious communities, even without formal complaints.
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com.