VHP-Bajrang Dal leader Vikas Verma, speaking at a weekly Hanuman Chalisa event, peddled the conspiracy theory of “love jihad” and claimed that opposition to the Bajrang Dal exists because the group fights for Hindus. He justified the harassment of Muslim clothing store in Kotdwar and alleged that individuals such as Deepak Kumar, who opposed the harassment of the Muslim vendor, are leftists. He further claimed that such leftists are operating among them and are taking money from Christian missionaries and extremists to indulge in religious conversions.