VHP to raise pitch for central anti-conversion law ahead of UP Assembly polls

Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) is set to raise the pitch for central anti-conversion law and freeing temples and mutts from government control.

The two-day meeting of the Governing Council and Board of Trustees of the VHP at Faridabad will also take stock of the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya and discuss plans to spread awareness about Covid-19 and the importance of vaccination.

“Temples and mutts are a matter of the faith of the people. Their management should also vest with the people and not with the government, as is the case in several states,” VHP General Secretary Milind Parande told reporters.

The VHP demand comes against the backdrop of recent arrests in Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat on allegations of forced religious conversions.

Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat have brought in laws making forced religious conversions a criminal offence with a jail term of up to 10 years.

The VHP leaders will also deliberate on the freedom of monasteries and temples from the control of governments. According to the VHP, the demand for ceding government control of temples has been gaining ground in states such as Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana.

The VHP leaders contended that temples such as Tirupati and Srisailam have been governed by people from other communities, which hurts the Hindu society.

On the Ram Temple issue, Parande dismissed the allegations of fraud in land acquisition for the temple complex in Ayodhya as “political” which were levelled keeping the Uttar Pradesh elections in mind.

“These people have made no contribution to the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. They are opposed to the temple and are now creating hurdles in its construction,” he said referring to the allegations levelled by AAP and SP.

The VHP will complete 60 years in 2024 and the two-day meeting will also plan further expansion of the organisation in the country.