Rashtraiya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat’s comments that “India is a Hindu nation and Hindutva is its identity” have come under fire from various political parties, but it has also prompted a clash of views among social-media users.
A battle is being played out on Twitter under the hashtag #WeHindus, with many users, including Bharatiya Janata Party supporters, endorsing Mr. Bhagwat’s comments.
The hashtag was trending for a day after Mr. Bhagwat made the comments at the golden jubilee celebrations of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Mumbai; traffic has not stopped three days later on Wednesday with many tweets bordering on slander.
Among those expressing their views was Priti Gandhi, co-convener, BJP communication cell, Maharashtra: “Whenever #WeHindus fought amongst ourselves in terms of self-interest of one class against another, it has led to impoverishment & enslavement!” “These hashtags like #joinrss #WeHindus are trending on top only in BJP govt, only under bjp rule this supreme religion can rise again,” tweeted one user from Delhi.
While BJP and RSS followers endorsed Mr. Bhagwat’s remarks, many Twitter users condemned the “dictates” of the RSS-VHP combine. Award-winning mountaineer Kavitha Reddy tweeted: “#WeHindus do not need a RSS VHP or BJP represent us, we are Liberal and Progressive minds and do not belong to stone age mindset!”