A “love jihad” tableau during Bajrang Dal’s Shivratri celebrations in Bihar’s Munger town Wednesday has sparked a political row in the state, with Opposition parties seeing it as an attempt to stoke communal sentiments.
Part of a 50-off tableaux procession in Munger, it is believed to have featured “gory images” and “communally charged” messages. The remaining tableaux had images of Hindu God Shiva and Goddess Parvati.
“Love Jihad” is a term used by some outfits to level allegations of religious conversions by marriage.
When asked, Munger’s Bajrang Dal convenor Saurabh S Sampanna told The Indian Express that it was meant to be a “social message”. “We did not name or target any religion and used some news items published in various newspapers. We wanted to draw people’s attention towards atrocities against Hindu women in the name of marriage.”
But Opposition parties Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress see the tableau as “inciteful”. “The state government should take note of such outrageous posters,” RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari said.
Bihar Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta echoed the sentiments.
“The Constitution of India does not allow anyone to attack any religion directly or indirectly. The Bajrang Dal poster was in bad taste,” he said.
On its part, the BJP, which is part of the state’s ruling Nitish Kumar coalition, claims that the Bajrang Dal “does not function legitimately in Bihar as part of the RSS’s subsidiary wing”.
Story continues below this ad
“If some local people are calling themselves Bajrang Dal members, we have no idea. But love jihad is a matter of great concern and its social message could have been given in a better manner than using some gory images,” he said.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd