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A three-day hate speech conclave was organised by the controversial Hindutva leader Yati Narsinghanand from 17 to 19 December in Uttarakhand's pilgrimage city of Haridwar, where multiple calls to kill minorities and attack their religious spaces were made.
A part of the event was live-streamed on social media. The videos of some of the speeches have also gone viral.
Narsinghanand, the notorious priest of Dasna Devi temple in Ghaziabad and recently anointed 'Mahamandaleshwar' of the Juna Akhara, had earlier threatened police authorities on camera amid reports that the 'Goonda Act' might be slapped against him.
While the administration still waits to decide what action to take against the Hindutva hatemongers, the gathering had speakers like Annapurna Maa, Dharamdas Maharaj from Bihar, Anand Swaroop Maharaj, Sagar Sindhuraj Maharaj, Swami Premanand Maharaj, and BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay.
Upadhyay presented India’s Constitution, in saffron colour, to his "Gurudev" Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati. Upadhyay is the one who was earlier involved in organizing a rally in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, where anti-Muslim slogans were chanted.
Here’s what the speakers said:
Annapurna Maa, Mahamandleshwar of Niranjini Akhada and General secretary of Hindu Mahasabha, said:
Dharamdas Maharaj from Bihar said:
Anand Swaroop Maharaj said:
The Quint reached out to the police to see if cognisance had been taken. However, the police is yet to respond.
Giving the moto of 'Shastra Mev Jayate' to incite armed violence against Muslims, Narsinghanand said:
Meanwhile, Sagar Sindhuraj Maharaj emphasised, “I keep repeating again and again that instead of buying Rs 5000 mobile but buy Rs 1 lakh rupee weapon. You should at least have sticks and swords.”
Back in October, while speaking to The Quint on the condition of anonymity, senior police officials in Ghaziabad had claimed that the department was currently examining legal grounds to invoke the Goonda Act against Narsinghanand, but no official steps had been taken in this regard.
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