Congress takes a dig at BJP’s Hindutva politics as Priyanka Gandhi visits Lord Hanuman temple in Shimla
Shimla, May 13
The morning prayers by the All India Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi at the Lord Hanuman Temple in Jakhu of Shimla on the morning of May 13th, seems have been answered in ‘favour’ as the old party celebrates its historic victory in Karnataka.
Gandhi shared a photo of herself meditating in the ‘Sahaj Asana’ pose at the temple on her Facebook page and her handle stated that she prayed for happiness of citizens of Karnataka and the country.
Ms Gandhi released several pictures on social media, stating that she prayed for the happiness, prosperity, and peace of the people of Karnataka, and the country, asking for Lord Bajrang’s blessings. During her visit, the Pujari (worshipper) of the temple and BJP activist Deepak presented her with a laminated picture of Lord Hanuman of Jakhu.
Yet, on the other side to many party supporters, Â her visit and the victory seems to be depicting a silent message to the BJP and Prime Minister Narinder Modi. Since moving to her Shimla residence, Ms Gandhi has rarely been seen in public places, but has celebrated Diwali in Shimla for the past three years. Her visit to one of the greatest abodes of Bajrang Bali in Shimla, could be seen as a symbolic message to the Prime Minister.
Notably, the BJP had previously equated Congress’s announcement to ban the far-right Hindu group ‘Bajrang Dal’ in the Karnataka assembly poll, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had appealed to voters to defeat Congress, claiming that the INC was setting a wrong narrative about Bajrang bali and his devotees. Though, now it seems that the Congress was able to control the damage from this announcement during the election.
Moreover, this is not the first time the Congress party has taken a soft Hindutva turn to improve their election prospects. Just a few days ago, on May 4th, the party leaders were seen rushing to the same shrine as they released photographs taken under the massive Lord Hanuman statue on Mount Jakhu, following their victory in the Shimla Municipal Corporation election.
The shrine of Hanuman is revered by the people of Shimla. It is the highest point of the town and believed to be where Hanuman stayed for a moment while taking ‘Sanjeevani Buti.
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