PUNE, 26 December 2002 — Leaders of the militant Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) including its controversial general secretary Pravin Togadia arrived here to participate in a five-day party conclave.
The close-door meeting of the 350-member governing council of the VHP started yesterday morning, with the construction of a temple at Ayodhya being the main item on the agenda.
The meeting assumes political significance as Togadia had stated that the VHP would chalk out an action plan to convert India into a Hindu nation in two years.
City Police Commissioner Ranjit Singh Sharma said Togadia was told to refrain from making any inflammatory remarks or speeches at any public place that will disrupt peace and harmony and inflame communal tension.
Sharma said if Togadia violated the order police would take stern and immediate action under section 14 of the Criminal Procedure Code that empowers them to restrict movement of people. He said the police were not concerned about Togadia’s speeches at the party conclave and would only be monitoring his public speeches.
VHP activists meanwhile have made massive preparations for a public rally to be addressed by Togadia at the Modern College grounds on Dec. 29. The youth wing of the VHP has threatened the government that it will take to the streets if Togadia were prevented from making speeches at the public meetings.
Taking no chances on the security front, Dr. Jay Jadhav, deputy commissioner of city police, said all VHP leaders, including Ashok Singhal and Togadia, have been provided security cover. Elaborate security arrangements have also been in place at the venue of the conclave.
