New Delhi (AsiaNews) - The fasting guru Baba Ramdev and support given to him by Hindu extremists "is ridiculous" says Lenin Raghuvanshi, an activist for human rights. The well-known yoga guru began a hunger strike until death "to fight corruption”, on 4 June. But in the night, the police raided Ramlila Maidan (Delhi), where Ramdev and thousands of his supporters carried out their protest. Police have beaten protesters and forced the guru to leave the city.
Harsh criticism rained down on the government, which justified the fact by stating that Ramdev was in breach of agreements made earlier. The next day, the BJP - the Hindu ultranationalist party - and the Sangh Parivar - a violent youth wing of the party - organized a satyagraha (nonviolent protest), similar to those of Mahatma Gandhi (killed by a Hindu radical , ed.)
For Digvijay Singh, secretary general of Congress, BJP support in the fight against corruption and satyagraha "is just a way to divert people's attention from the ' Sanghi terror ' Hindu ultra-nationalists and extremists."
Lenin Raghuvanshi, director of the People's Vigilants Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR), has condemned the violent actions of the police, but it is very critical of Baba Ramdev and his alleged anti-corruption battle. "With the economic liberalization of 1991 - he explains - three sections of society have a lot of money: politicians, gurus like Baba Ramdev and structures based on caste, which in turn are based on the hegemony. If our society does not eliminate this type of hegemony, or listen to the cries of the marginalized, how can you fight corruption? We need to eliminate the caste system in order to eradicate corruption. "
Raghuvanshi said: "Baba Ramdev has the support of the BJP and the Sangh Parivar. Today we are witnesses to a serious ethnic fascism: farmers brutally beaten to defend their land from expropriation; students beaten for asking for their rights. Ramdev could bring some of these issues to the national level, for example the cause of Dalits. So why continue to close an eye to all of this? Because he knows that in raising these issues, he would no longer have people like Ashok Singal (BJP) or Rithambhara (Sangh Parivar) on his side”.