Hindu Sena
Hindu Sena हिंदू सेना | |
---|---|
Leader | Vishnu Gupta |
Secretary-General | Prem Verma |
Founder | Vishnu Gupta |
Founded | 10 August 2011 |
Headquarters |
Hindu Mahasabha Bhawan, Mandir Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India, India |
Student wing | Hindu Vidyarthi Sena (HVS) |
Youth wing | Hindu Yuva Sena |
Women's wing | Hindu Sena Mahila Morcha |
Ideology |
Hindutva Hindu nationalism |
Political position | Far-right > |
Colours | Saffron |
Website | |
hindusena | |
Hindu Sena (IAST: Hindu Sēnā) (translation; Army of Hindus), also known by the name Sena, is an Indian Non-profit organization. Its ideology is based on pro-Hindu ideology and Hindu nationalism (Hindutva), founded on 10 August 2011 by Vishnu Gupta,[1] who is also its current leader. The party originally emerged from a movement in New Delhi demanding equal treatment for Hindu people. Members of Hindu Sena are referred to as Hindu sainiks. Although the party's primary base is still in India, it has tried to expand to a pan-Indian base. In the 2010, it gradually moved from advocating a pro-Hindu ideology to one supporting a broader Hindu nationalist agenda, as it refused to be aligned itself with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The party started taking part in New Delhi politics since its inception.
Background
Hindu Sena's founder and First President Vishnu Gupta was born on 10 August 1984 in Etah, Uttar Pradesh in a poor family. He moved to Delhi when he was six for further studies. He started the non-profit organization Hindu Sena along with a few trusted supporters in 2011, which has units in almost all parts of the country today, and is currently its national president. Vishnu Gupta has been detained several times since 2011, for his protests against wrongdoings of Leftists in India. He has been involved in protests against China for blocking the NSG bid recently. He led a pro-Free Balochistan Demonstration which attracted positive response to India from the Baloch community living across the world.
Supporting Balochistan
Hindu Sena waved a Balochistan flag and two Indian tricolours. "We support Balochistan's struggle for freedom, there have been many cases of human rights violations there and it should stop. Pakistan should free Balochistan," said Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta. But beyond that, he didn’t have anything to say on the issue. With his group, Vishnu Gupta led the protest screaming slogans like ‘Pakistan murdabad’ and `Hindustan zindabad’. The event continued for less than half an hour. Jantar Mantar also was unusually quiet on Wednesday. Gupta said it was Modi's Independence Day speech which inspired him to hold this protest. "He is the first PM who has been able to speak openly about this matter. We have been taking up the cause of Balochistan since 2011 and now Modiji has talked about it at last. We are happy about it," Gupta told reporters.
In his Red Fort speech, the Prime Minister had said, "I am grateful to the people of Balochistan, Gilgit and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir who have thanked me in the past few days." Earlier, at an all-party meeting, he had referred to human rights violations in these areas. Gupta said that his Baloch friends in Delhi and Pakistan have also thanked him for holding this demonstration but they could not participate as they were busy with something else. "Pakistan has caused harm to human rights in Balochistan and it has to stop. India has not caused any human rights violation in this country," he said. When asked about the present situation in Kashmir, he said the Valley and Balochistan are two different cases." Kashmir has always been ours but Balochistan does not belong to Pakistan." He said he will also write a letter about this to United Nations.[2]
Supporting Donald Trump's Presidential Campaign
Hindu Sena, organised a birthday party for Donald Trump in New Delhi on 14 June. The party took place at the Jantar Mantar monument and included a colourful birthday cake, as well as posters of the US presidential candidate. According to news agency ANI, the Hindu Sena said that only Trump would be able to save the world from the "epidemic" of Islamic terror. The group issued an open invitation for the celebration, urging people to join in celebrating the 70th birthday of the "savior of humanity". Hindu Sena's national president Vishnu Gupta said: "We are celebrating his special day, despite the recent tragedy in Orlando because he is taking a stand against Islamic terror and that is very important to India, as we have been plagued from this kind of terrorism. I pray that he wins with a heavy majority and fulfils his promise of wiping Islamic terror off the face of the earth." A month before the party, the Hindu Sena organised a "havan" (prayer ritual) to ask the Hindu gods for Trump's success in the US presidential elections.[3][4]
Protest at PIA office
Asserting that no talks should take place between India and Pakistan, activists Hindu Sena vandalised the regional office of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) at Barakhamba Road, New Delhi. Of the four Hindu Sena men who barged into the PIA office and damaged furniture and gadgets, one was arrested while three others fled before the police arrived. According to the police, they went to all three rooms of the office, located on the fifth floor of Narayan Manzil building, and caused damage all around. The activists upturned the chair kept at the reception and also damaged a replica of the aircraft run by PIA. Questioning the purpose of talks at a time when the Indian Air Force Base at Pathankot was attacked recently, the activists also left behind a few pamphlets documenting both their objection and a warning. The message written in the pamphlet blames Pakistan for the recent attacks in Pathankot and the Indian consulate in Afghanistan and through it the outfit has also called for a complete severing of ties with Pakistan unless it hands over all the anti-India elements to India. It further warns that the Hindu Sena plans to stop the Delhi-Lahore bus service and Samjhauta Express between the two countries. Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal who reached the office after the incident said the arrested person has been identified as Lalit Singh, a member of Hindu Sena. He added that no individual was injured or manhandled. However, a statement issued by Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs from Islamabad said the activists also "harassed and threatened the PIA staff." "The Pakistan High Commission immediately took up the matter with the (Indian) Ministry of External Affairs, asking them to provide adequate security to the PIA offices in New Delhi and Mumbai, as well as to take action against the miscreants. We have been assured by the Indian government that it would take all the necessary steps for the security of the PIA offices in India," said the statement. As an added security cover, nearly two dozen men from the Central Reserve Police Force were sent to the PIA office. Senior Delhi Police officers said that security would be enhanced around all installations connected to Pakistan if there is a threat perception.[5]
Kerela House Beef Controversy
Hindu Sena chief Vishnu Gupta was arrested on 25th Decempber 2015, two days after a PCR call by him alleging that beef was being served in the restaurant at Kerala House prompted police to visit the state guest house to ‘inquire’ into the matter. The visit, termed as a raid by the AAP government in Delhi and the Kerala government, among others, triggered a political controversy. In a related development, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi submitted a report on the incident to the Ministry of Home Affairs. He did not share details. "Gupta has been arrested under Section 107/151 of CrPC. He was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for a medical examination before his arrest. We will produce him in the special executive magistrate court," said DCP, New Delhi, Jatin Narwal. Initially, officers from the Connaught Place police station tried to approach Kerala House officials, especially the resident commissioner. However, after Kerala House officials filed no complaints with the police over the incident, Delhi Police discussed the matter with their legal advisors, said sources. "On Wednesday morning, three separate teams started tracking Gupta by using his cell phone location. He was detained from Janak Puri area," said sources. Gupta was detained at about 11 am and taken to Connaught Place police station, where he was questioned over the alleged false complaint. "He was arrested at about 4.30 pm," said the police. The resident commissioner of Kerala House and senior officers of Delhi Police remained available for comment. On Tuesday, Bassi had said police were contemplating action against Gupta under Section 182 of the Indian Penal Code (false information, with intent to cause public servant to use his lawful power to the injury of another person). He had said the PCR call was given priority because "it had the potential to disrupt harmony between communities and could have had disastrous consequences, especially because of the past record of Gupta, national president of Hindu Sena". Bassi had added, "The caller had already come to the police's notice because of his past record."[6]
External links
References
- ↑ Berger, Peter; Heidemann, Frank (3 June 2013). The Modern Anthropology of India: Ethnography, Themes and Theory. Routledge. p. 179. ISBN 1-134-06111-0.
- ↑ New Delhi, Aug 18, 2016, DHNS: (2016-08-18). "Hindu Sena stages protest, waves Balochistan flag". Deccanherald.com. Retrieved 2016-10-29.
- ↑ June 14, 2016 11:38 BST (2016-06-14). "India's right-wing Hindu Sena throws Donald Trump a birthday party in New Delhi". Ibtimes.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-29.
- ↑ Adrija Bose Social Media Editor, HuffPost India. "Hindu Sena Leaders Celebrating Donald Trump's Birthday May Even Leave Him A Little Red-Faced". Huffingtonpost.in. Retrieved 2016-10-29.
- ↑ "Hindu Sena attacks Pakistan Airlines office". The Hindu. 2016-01-14. Retrieved 2016-10-29.
- ↑ "Kerala House row: Hindu Sena chief, whose call led cops to restaurant, arrested". The Indian Express. 2015-12-25. Retrieved 2016-10-29.