The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) severely criticised MNS president Raj Thackeray for his stance against Hindi saying he is indulging in vote bank politics and dividing the country.
“It is vote bank politics and Raj Thackeray will not succeed in dividing the country in the name of opposition to the Hindi language. Those humiliating the ‘lingua franca’ in Maharashtra should be punished,” VHP international president Ashok Singhal said at a press conference here on Sunday .
Humiliating Hindi is open treason and such treacherous persons should be given the hardest punishment, Mr. Singhal said referring to the incident in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly where the newly-elected members of the MNS disrupted oath-taking in Hindi.
He said Mr. Thackeray has not only insulted Hindi but the ‘rashtrabhasha’ and this cannot be tolerated. He has a small identity and is trying to create hatred among the people, he added.
Mr. Singhal, who aired his views on different subjects was furious on the Deoband resolution banning the singing of Vande Mataram which he charged was passed in the presence of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram.
“The people of the country do not want a Home Minister in whose presence the Jamiat-E-Ulema moved a resolution not to sing Vande Mataram,” Mr. Singhal said.
He also demanded making public the assets of the Trimala Tirupati Deosthan.
“The public wants to know what are the assets of the Balaji temple and what is the worth of the real estate, and the jewellery held by the Tirupati Deosthan and whether it has been properly recorded,” he said.
