Stating that they were not backing any political party or individual, Vishwa Hindu Parishad international working president Pravin Togadia has asked people to vote for candidates with a clean slate and stature in Lok Sabha elections.
“VHP has no political agenda and the organisation is not supporting anyone. We are with those who are credible and committed to protect the interests of millions of Hindus,” he said.
He said that people should check past performance of candidates as well as the parties before electing them. “People should select only those who have honoured their commitments and are honest,” the VHP leader told PTI. Criticising the formation of Minority Development Corporation by the UPA with a financial allocation of Rs.700 crore, Mr.Togadia questioned its propriety and said that the majority population (Hindus) is deprived of such privileges. “No one thinks of millions of Hindus living in poor conditions,” he charged. “Are there not any poor Hindu students who also deserve financial assistance for studies,” he asked.
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Evading a direct answer on his ‘strained’ relations with Gujarat Chief Minister and BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, Mr.Togadia said since he is a VHP leader, his views are not separate from his party.
Mr.Togadia was in Nagpur recently to launch India Health Line (IHL), an initiative to provide health services to the needy and poor patients at low cost. IHL is the biggest-ever health initiative to provide free health facility to all poor Hindus on a single phone call across the nation. “We are trying to connect patients with doctors willing to provide health services,” he said.
“There are untreated diseases only because patients after primary examination by doctor do not approach specialist doctors as advised. It is mainly due to poverty, fear of increased medical expenses that people tend to ignore some serious disease,” he said. The service will be launched in Pune, Delhi and other cities across the country.
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