Ever since the Dasna Devi Temple head priest Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati urged Hindus to be fearless in describing the character traits of Prophet Muhammad, Muslims in many parts of the country have threatened him with dire consequences for insulting their Prophet.
Delhi AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan openly called for Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati’s beheading for his remarks on Prophet Muhammad. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi also criticised the Dasna Devi Temple head priest for his comments on Prophet. Posters calling for the decapitation of Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati sprung up in Kanpur. Similarly, Muslims, online and offline, also issued threats and demonstrated against Narsinghanand Saraswati, demanding both judicial and extra-judicial punishment.
In one such demonstration carried out in Yamunanagar, Panipat, Haryana, Hindus and Muslims came face to face over the issue. In the light of campaigns calling for violence against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, Hindu organisations in Panipat planned a sit-in vigil on April 12 to mark their support to the Dasna Devi Temple head priest. Their plan was to sit in peace and submit a memorandum to the administrative authorities.
OpIndia contacted the organisers of the protest to understand what transpired at the event. The organisers claimed that as the discussion on how to organise the demonstration was underway, they received frantic calls from the intelligence department, asking them to postpone the sit-in vigil. The administration then cautioned them to abide by the coronavirus guidelines. The Hindu activists assured that they would follow the rules.
The organisers claim that the Hindus had planned to organise a demonstration in support of Mahant Narsighanand Saraswati at a gate situated close to the court. However, a day before the protest, Muslims also decided that they, too, would protest against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati at the same place where Hindus were to organise a sit-in vigil.
Hindu activists claim this was done on purpose to stop from expressing their support to Yati Narsingahanand Saraswati. While talking to OpIndia, one of them said had they been a little late at the venue, they would not have even gotten any place to lay carpet, much less organise a demonstration in support of the Mahant.
We spoke to the local Hindu leader Udayveer Shastri to understand the whole matter, who told us a Muslim mob had gathered near the protest site, dangerously close to Hindu tents. When objected, the administration pushed the Muslim crowd a little farther away. Udayveer Shastri said, “We made it clear to the Hindus that on the holy land of Yamunanagar, we will not let anybody put the garland of shoes on Mahant Narsinghanand’s photo, nor allow anyone to burn his effigy.”
Aditya Rohilla, who participated in the protest, told us that the Muslim crowd had come equipped with a complete sound system and creating noise. It was then that the Hindu leaders went to the Muslim camp to dissuade them from using mics and speakers. For a brief period, the loud music stopped. However, the sound resumed once again as Muslims started chanting “Allahu Akbar” slogans.
The Muslim protesters hurled obscenities at Mahant Yati Narasimhanand Saraswati. As the tempers soared high, the police intervened and stopped Muslims from using the sound system. The Muslim mob was removed from the spot, after which the Hindus submitted their memorandum.
Speaking on the altercation, Udayveer Shastri expressed concerns that Muslim communities have not shied away from taking to the streets while Hindus continue to remain keyboard warriors.
“If anyone puts up with adharma, he is a criminal, even if he belongs to the Hindu community. Bhagavad Gita says: ‘Swadharma Dhanam Shreyah‘, that is, perform your duties. But, I want to ask where they teach ‘Ahimsa Parmo Dharma’, why do they hide ‘Dharma Hinsa Tathaiva Ch’? Just as non-violence is religion, so is violence for religion is also religion. If we sit complacently in our house, the same 800-year-old history will repeat itself. Today, some saints have taken up their duty, so Hindus will wake up soon,” Shastri said.
Speaking on the incidents that motivated Deepak Tyagi into becoming Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, Shastri said that incidents like Hindu girls being molested by Muslims had a lasting effect on Narsinghanand Saraswati’s mind which eventually pushed him towards spiritualism. Shastri said the repeated molestation of Hindu girls and incidents like this led Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati to study Islam.
Udayveer Shastri, influenced by Mahant Yati, said that the Dasna Devi Temple head priest is only speaking things that he found after studying Islam. He said if anyone is having any problem with his comments, they should counter his arguments or condemn them. Dishing out threats of beheading is not the way, he said.
What is Udayveer Shastri’s message to awakened Hindus?
Commenting on the population explosion among Muslims, Shastri pointed out how Muslims are encouraged to produce more and more children, who are later sent to madrassas where they are brainwashed and turned into fundamentalists. He termed Islamic countries as bastions of terror, where children are handed over guns and bombs to become jihadis.
Shastri also concurs with Wasim Rizvi, who recently moved the Supreme Court to get certain verses of the Quran removed. He cites China, where there is a ban on keeping half a beard, wearing short pyjamas and naming children as Mohammed.
Udayveer claims he is doing all this for Islam’s good, for bringing about social reform in the religion. In a conversation with Opindia, he also cited India’s history, stating that those who adopted Islam did so out of fear of being beheaded.
Udayveer Shastri states that those who were the cowards of yesterday are the Muslims of today. Similarly, he cautioned Hindus that those who are cowards today would become Muslims tomorrow. Talking about ‘Veer Bhogya Vasundhara’, he said that this country asks for sacrifices. From historical figures such as Maharana Pratap and Chhatrapati Shivaji to Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, from Lala Lajpat Rai, Sardar Patel to Lal Bahadur Shastri – all have made sacrifices for this country.
Muslims claim they did not abuse Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati
On the other hand, the Muslims who were protesting at the site claimed that they did not make any demeaning comments against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati. They claimed that they are being vilified and false allegations are levelled against them. The senior officials reached the spot and accepted the memorandum from both sides. Hindu organizations asked the officials to prosecute the Muslim mob for inciting hatred in society.