Fringe and the Mainstream

Togadia on Hindutva Storm

 All those who opposed Hindutva, and this certainly included secularists, would get the "death sentence'' he declared. But the VHP would not have to carry out the sentence, the people would. "All Hindutva opponents will get the death sentence and we will leave it to the people to carry this out,'' he said.

Prior to 1989, the BJP itself was a "political untouchable," but that was not the case now, the coalition National Democratic Alliance Government was proof of this. However, even after the NDA took birth the BJP's Hindutva agenda remained "untouchable". Mr. Togadia and the VHP would set that right. It had already been set right in Gujarat where "our Hindutva agenda has become touchable (acceptable),'' he argued.

Gujarat had, in fact, "finished the credibility of the secularists''. They had described the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, as `khalnayak' (villain) but the people saw him as a hero. Those who had said that the VHP belonged to the `lunatic fringe' were wrong. "I have moved centre-stage, and they (secularists) have become the impotent fringe.'' 

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