Rita Bahuguna calls VHP a 'political organization', asks Ashok Singhal to stand for elections

Uttar Pradesh Congress President Rita Bahuguna Joshi on Sunday asked Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) President Ashok Singhal to stand for elections if he is so worried about the Hindus in this country.

"VHP is no longer a religious association but it is a political association. If Ashok Singhal is so worried, he should stand for elections and he will understand that the Hindus in this country are very open minded and they don't want any religious conflicts. The entire motive of this Yatra is wrong," she said.

"Singhal's past track record shows that he has a hardcore nationalistic ideology. When the High Court has agreed to the restriction, any yatra that is taken out is completely against the law and stopping it is justified," she added.

She said the objective of VHP's Chaurasi Kosi Parikrama Yatra is a political one.

"This is not a religious yatra but a political one and it is aimed at the 2014 general elections. They want to disturb the communal harmony and they are making all attempts to strengthen their political strength," she said.

Earlier in the day, VHP President Ashok Singhal and senior leader Praveen Togadia were detained by the police, along with 500 activists across Uttar Pradesh.

Togadia was arrested when he defied prohibitory orders in Ayodhya and attempted to conduct prayers on the banks of the Saryu river, after the Uttar Pradesh government had banned the yatra, while Singhal was detained at the Lucknow airport.

Prominent among those arrested by the state police include Savitri Bai Phule, VHP's provincial coordinator Acharya Kushmuni and Mahant Santosh Das alias Sathu Baba, a VHP office bearer in Varanasi while prominent VHP leader Mahant Ram Saran Das was held at Ram Sanehi Ghat in Ayodhya.

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Saturday dismissed a plea for allowing 84-Kosi parikrama yatra, stating that there is a possibility of tension, and added that the restriction will be maintained.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad had vowed to kick off its 'Chaurasi Kosi Parikrama' around Ayodhya to revive its demand for a Ram temple.

The Samajwadi Party Government has banned the proposed Yatra, as a preemptive measure against communal flare-up.