VHP Announces Year-Long Global Programmes for Ashok Singhal Birth Centenary
Alok Kumar says initiatives on service, social harmony, Hindu empowerment and temple autonomy will be taken forward
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 27th Sept: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Friday announced a series of year-long programmes across India and abroad to mark the birth centenary of its late leader Ashok Singhal, with the celebrations scheduled to begin on September 27.
Addressing a press conference in Indraprastha, VHP International President and senior advocate Alok Kumar said the programmes would commemorate Singhal’s life, organisational work and contribution to society and Indian culture. The VHP said the celebrations would include thousands of seminars, public meetings, exhibitions, service initiatives and public-awareness programmes.
Kumar said the organisation would seek to advance what it described as Singhal’s unfinished initiatives, including a campaign against illegal religious conversions, promotion of Ghar Wapsi, dissemination of Vedic knowledge and science, social harmony and service activities, as well as its demand for freeing temples from government control.
He also said the VHP would seek to take forward Singhal’s stated resolve concerning Kashi and Mathura following the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. These are positions articulated by the VHP as part of its centenary-year programme.
Main inauguration in Delhi
The main inauguration ceremony, organised jointly by the VHP and the Ashok Singhal Foundation, will be held on September 27 from 4 pm at the Plenary Hall, Level-3, Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
According to the VHP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will attend as the chief guest, while Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Sarkaryavah Dattatreya Hosabale will be the special guest. Mahamandaleshwar Swami Parmanand Giri Maharaj is also scheduled to attend.
A special exhibition highlighting Singhal’s life, spiritual influences, organisational activities, role in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi movement and association with Indian culture will be organised during the event.
A coffee-table book titled Divine Footprints of Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram will also be released. The organisers will unveil a replica of the proposed ‘Shri Ram Stambh’ and digitally launch the ‘Shri Ram Stambhs’, intended to highlight places associated with Lord Ram’s life and forest-exile route.
Service camp in Ayodhya
A five-day camp for persons with disabilities will also begin at Karsevakpuram in Ayodhya on September 27. Organised with the support of the Ashok Singhal Foundation and VHP, the camp will provide artificial limbs and assistive devices to beneficiaries and will continue until October 1.
The VHP said the broader objective of the centenary celebrations is to take Singhal’s message to a wider section of society and give fresh impetus to programmes related to service, organisation, cultural awareness and social harmony.
The organisation said inauguration programmes would be held at 47 prominent locations across India between September 27 and October 4, followed by activities at thousands of locations in India and abroad throughout the year. These will include service programmes, social-harmony initiatives, public-awareness campaigns, seminars and exhibitions.
Ashok Singhal, who was born on September 27, 1926, served for decades as a senior leader of the VHP and was closely associated with the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. He died in November 2015.
