By Ankit Raj
New Delhi: On Sunday (April 12), at Ayyappa Park in Hastsal, Uttam Nagar (West Delhi), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) – an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh – carried out a large-scale distribution of trishuls (tridents) among the youth.
The VHP distributed 1,700 trishuls among the cadres of its youth wing, the Bajrang Dal. The organisation has consistently referred to this initiative as ‘Trishul Deeksha [initiation]’. According to them, the programme is intended to administer a pledge focused on sanskar (values), seva (service) and suraksha (security)’; however, on the ground, its implications appear far more complex.
Speaking to The Wire Hindi, Sanjeev Kumar, the VHP (Indraprastha) chief of publicity and outreach, stated that plans are in place to organise similar events across the entirety of Delhi, with an estimated 30,000-plus trishuls likely to be distributed through these initiatives.
It is worth noting that this ‘Trishul Deeksha’ programme took place after a local criminal incident had escalated into communal tension. Ayyappa Park is located just a short distance from the spot where 26-year-old Tarun Kumar was murdered on the day of Holi (March 4).
What began as a minor dispute soon took on the character of communal tension. A Muslim family stands accused of the murder – a family whose home was first vandalised by unidentified individuals and subsequently subjected to a demolition drive by the municipal corporation, and who have now fled the area.
This story was originally published in thewire.in. Read the full story here.
