No proposal before Congress to ban Bajrang Dal: Veerappa Moily

Mangaluru: Amid strong protest from the Sangh Parivar against the Congress manifesto mentioning a ban on Bajrang Dal, senior Congress leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister Veerappa Moily on Wednesday said there was no suggestion before the party to ban Bajrang Dal if elected to power.

Addressing reporters in Udupi, he said the Congress had mentioned action against organisations like the Bajrang Dal in the manifesto in the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s stringent observations against hate politics.

Moily said state governments did not have the right to ban such organisations. "The BJP, which now adores Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, forgets that Patel had banned the RSS at one juncture," he said, adding that Jawaharlal Nehru later revoked the decision.

"The Supreme Court’s stand over hate politics is very clear. We had made the statement in our manifesto as a part of it. But we have no intention of banning Bajrang Dal. KPCC president D K Shivakumar has made it clear today," Moily said.

Meanwhile, addressing reporters in Mangaluru, AICC spokesperson Gourav Vallabh alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had hurt the sentiments of the devotees of Lord Hanuman by equating Lord Hanuman with an organisation.

He demanded an apology from the Prime Minister for his offensive remark on Lord Hanuman. "No one has given the Prime Minister the right to offend Bajrang Bali. He should apologise to Kannadigas for equating between an individual or organisation and Lord Hanuman,” he said.

The Congress is committed to taking action against individuals and organisations that sow the seeds of division and spread hatred in the society, Vallabh said.