D K Shivakumar questions relation between Bajrang Dal and Lord Hanuman

BENGALURU: After the furore over the Congress manifesto, which promises to ban the Bajrang Dal, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D K Shivakumar questioned Hindu outfits what relation the Bajrang Dal had with Lord Hanuman.

Justifying the manifesto, which declared that the Congress will ban Bajrang Dal, along with PFI, if the party is elected to power, he said, “I am also Hindu, a devotee of Lord Hanuman, and a devotee of Lord Shiva. Why are Hindu outfits worried about the mention of the ban on Bajrang Dal in the party manifesto? They are simply provoking, and people have understood it now”. “We also have some qualities of Lord Hanuman, but Bajrang Dal and Lord Hanuman are different”, he justified.

The manifesto proposal to ban the Bajrang Dal, along with PFI, has now become a big headache for Congress leaders. Opposition leader Siddaramaiah, state party chief D K Shivakumar and AICC general secretary Randeep Surjewala held a separate meeting in a private hotel in the city in this regard.

Later, reacting to Hindu outfits’ vows to chant Hanuman Chalisa every day from April 4, Shivakumar said, “Earlier, RSS was different, today’s RSS is different. Why are you thinking that I am targeting you? First, save the country”.

Questioning those who are campaigning against the Congress manifesto, he asked, “How many people have been given jobs? And what have people given to others?”. He also claimed that the manifesto will not damage the party’s prospects and asserted, “The Congress will certainly come to power on May 13”.