Islamophobic Remarks :
A self-declared spiritual authority and the Acharya Mahamandaleshwar (head) of Juna Akhara, one of the oldest Hindu monastic organizations, is Swami Avdeshananda Giri. ‘Powerful people’ including the President of India, the Union Home Minister, Bollywood actors, and business moguls frequent his ashram in Haridwar, Uttrakhand. On the satellite station Sanskar TV, his talks are broadcast live.
However, Giri repositioned his viewpoint to remain relevant in the context of the country’s highly polarized communal dynamics following the ascendance of the Hindu far-right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to political power.
He openly alludes to the concept of the “Hindu Rashtra” and extols Narendra Modi and his brand of politics.
“I finally have the Prime Minister I wanted. When he contacted Prime Minister Modi in June 2022, he stated, “Today, there is a government in our country that is just like the one I had pictured.
He urged Hindus to put an end to their quarrels and to cease criticizing Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) leaders at a gathering in Uttrakhand because those who do so wind up “harming Hindus” and undermining their (Hindu) standing.
At the conclusion of the Hindu Swabhiman Jagran Sant Padyatra, a month-long foot march by saints and seers in the state to declare India a “Hindu Rashtra,” Giri addressed the crowd in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, saying: “The day Hindus become staunch, they will raise their voice for the rights of people, they will sacrifice their limbs to protect dharma, and they will even sell their wife and children for truth. There won’t be any bloodshed or panic on this planet when Ram Rajya arrives because Hindus will have realized their true nature and identity.
He said, “If a person living in Hindustan is not a Hindu then who is he/she? “, in an attempt to impose the monolithic “Hindu Identity” on one of the most diverse nations, India. Who are the people living in India if there are French in France, Dutch in Holland, Americans in America, Japanese in Japan, and Britons in England?” he asked, to which the response was “Hindu.”
If a DNA test is conducted, it will reveal that all of our ancestors were Hindus, hence we were and will continue to be Hindus. In ancient times, we were all Hindus. Hindus are peace-loving people who believe that everyone in the world is a part of one big family.
In addition, Giri asserted that “the day Hindus become kattar (hardcore), the doors of peace and reconciliation will open.”
Notably, a resolution calling for the creation of a “Constitutional Hindu Rashtra (nation)” in India was also adopted at the gathering.