Bajrang Dal
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Template:Politics of India Bajrang Dal is part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) family, is the youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). It was started on 1 October 1984, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, and has since spread throughout India. The main ideology of the organisation is Hindutva. It claims to have 1,300,000 members, of which 850,000 are workers. The Bajrang Dal runs akhadas like RSS's shakhas (branches). There are about 2,500 akhadas compared to 49,500 shakhas of the RSS and 48,000 units of the VHP. The slogan of the Bajrang Dal is "seva suraksha sanskar", or "service, safety, and culture". An integral part of its agenda is preventing the killing of cows. The Dal has vowed to liberate the Ramjanmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya, the Krishnajanmabhoomi temple in Mathura and the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Kashi (Varanasi), which are currently disputed structures. It has also vowed to protect India's Hindu identity, which it believes to be in danger from the growing Muslim population. It may have been involved in the demolition of Babri Mosque in Ayodhya in 1992, which caused a nationwide riot and fanned religious sentiments.
Origin
In October 1984, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) initiated the practice of regular processions in honour of the Hindu god Rama to be held in Ayodhya in the state of Uttar Pradesh. These processions were called "Ram-Janaki Rathayatra" and were aimed at "awakening the society". While the VHP did not officially claim any anti-religion drivers for this practice, some sections of the society in India viewed this as a pro-Hindu movement. As a result, there was an environment of communal tension and threat surrounding this procession. Under these circumstances, 'holy saints' (members of VHP) called upon the youth to protect the procession, thus the Bajrang Dal was formed. Eventually, most of the members of Bajrang Dal have come to be very proud of the group and the group now has members outside of Uttar Pradesh as well.
List of presidents
- Vinay Katiyar
- Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya
- Dr. Surendra Jain
- Prakash Sharma (current president)
External links
- Official Bajrang Dal website (http://www.hinduunity.org/bajrangdal.html)