Right-wing rally in Udupi brandishes swords, urges Hindus to worship weapons
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Udupi: Around a thousand people under the banner of Hindu Jagarana Vedike, a right-wing group, took out a rally from the Mahishamardini temple in Karnataka's Udupi on Sunday, that saw some brandishing of swords and heard slogans like "we will build a Hindu Rashtra," being raised.
The rally also saw many leaders from right-wing groups and dignitaries from the ruling BJP, including the local MLA Raghupathi Bhat, who could be seen endorsing the chanting of 'Hindu Rashtra', a report published in The News Minute said.
Following the end of the rally that was hauled up at the venue of the programme outside the Udupi Krishna temple, leaders were heard making incendiary speeches.
In the introductory speech made by an Udupi-based television reporter, Shrikant Shetty Karkala urged every Hindu family to keep a weapon in the house, and to worship weapons in the next Ayudha puja, as part of developing a mindset to use weapons.
Shrikant Shetty also bragged about the role the Hindu Jagarana Vedike had played in instating the Hindu boys to face off against Muslim classmates during the stir over Hijab.
He also warned that there would be thousands of swords along with saffron turbans to address any issue that arises in the future, referring to the appearance of students in the classrooms wearing saffron turbans.
Many came against Udupi MLA Raghupathi Bhat for chanting a cry for 'Hindu Rashtra along with the crowd, citing a breach of the oath which called for the preservation of the Constitution.
Karnataka Minister for Kannada and Culture Sunil Kumar, Udupi MLA Raghupathi Bhat and former Congress leader Pramod Madhwaraj, who recently joined the BJP, were part of the roadshow by the Hindu Jagarana Vedike in Udupi. Pramod Madhwaraj, however, was not part of the event that took place at the end of the rally.
