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regular-article-logo Friday, 03 May 2024

AAP, BJP invoke Lord Hanuman; processions, 'chalisa' recitals held in Delhi

With Arvind Kejriwal receiving the first dose of insulin in Tihar Jail on Monday evening since his arrest on March 21, AAP leaders said that it happened due to the blessings of Lord Hanuman

PTI New Delhi Published 23.04.24, 09:37 PM
Devotees take part in a 'Shobha Yatra' on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti, at Chandni Chowk, in New Delhi

Devotees take part in a 'Shobha Yatra' on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti, at Chandni Chowk, in New Delhi File photo

AAP leaders took out processions carrying mace with stickers of insulin vials and visited temples while BJP leaders organised special Hanuman Chalisa recitals across Delhi on Tuesday, as the two parties invoked Lord Hanuman on the festival commemorating the birth of the deity.

With Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal receiving the first dose of insulin in Tihar Jail on Monday evening since his arrest on March 21, AAP leaders said that it happened due to the blessings of Lord Hanuman.

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His wife Sunita Kejriwal offered prayers at the Hanuman Temple in Connaught Place on the occasion of Hanuman Janmotsav and said she hopes to visit again soon with her husband.

The party leaders had accused the Tihar administration of denying insulin to Kejriwal who suffers from diabetes and had claimed it was a "conspiracy" to kill the chief minister who was showing a spike in his sugar levels. Kejriwal is currently lodged in Tihar Jail in connection with a money laundering-linked excise policy case.

"May Hanuman Baba give wisdom and prosperity to all. May Hanuman Baba take away everyone's trouble and mine too. I will come back with sir (Arvind Kejriwal) soon," Sunita Kejriwal said.

Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj organised a ‘Shobhayatra’ of Lord Hanuman in his Greater Kailash constituency.

"Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is an immense ‘Bhakt’ of Hanuman ji. Today Hanuman ji has once again come to alleviate the trouble of his ‘Bhakt’. On this auspicious occasion of Hanuman Jayanti, Kejriwal received insulin.

"The jail administration was denying him insulin. This shows that whenever the devotees of Lord Hanuman are in trouble, he comes to their rescue," the senior party leader said.

The procession featured artistes dressed as Lord Ram, Sita, Lakshman, and Hanuman. During the 'shobhayatra', the person posing as Lord Hanuman was seen carrying props of insulin vials while Bharadwaj held a mace with stickers that had 'insulin' written on them The procession commenced from the ‘Prachin Shiv Mandir’ of Chirag Delhi and toured areas such as Chirag Delhi and Sheikh Sarai.

Aam Aadmi Party leaders including Kejriwal have in the past also invoked Hindu gods which had led its critics to charge it with peddling "soft Hindutva".

Last week, the party launched its "AAP Ka Ram Rajya" website to showcase the party's concept of "Ram Rajya", saying Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal tried to realise the ideals of Lord Ram in the national capital.

In 2022, Kejriwal suggested printing images of Goddess Laxmi and Lord Ganesh on currency notes to boost the economy.

Amid the Lok Sabha election campaigning, AAP candidates -- Somnath Bharti, Kuldeep Kumar, Mahabal Mishra and Sahiram Pehelwan -- too sought the blessings of the deity on Tuesday.

Delhi minister Atishi visited Hanuman temples in the Kalkaji assembly constituency and prayed for the good health of Kejriwal.

"Today I visited various Hanuman temples in Kalkaji and participated in the Bhandara and prayed to Bajrangbali to keep the popular Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, healthy.

"This holy occasion of Hanuman Jayanti has proved to be very auspicious for the people of Delhi. Due to the prayers of the people of Delhi for their brother, their son and the blessings of Bajrangbali, Kejriwal ji finally got insulin in jail today," she said in a post on X in Hindi.

Delhi BJP leaders said that they held mass recitals of 'Hanuman Chalisa' at temples and other places across 13,637 polling booths across the city. Many senior party leaders and candidates in Lok Sabha polls attended the programmes at various locations.

In-charge of Delhi BJP for Lok Sabha polls OP Dhankhar attended Hanuman Chalisa paath (recital) at Dwarka while state president Virendra Sachdeva attended the event at Prachin Hanuman temple in Connaught Place.

"We prayed for the health and happiness of the Delhi people. We also prayed that just like a Ram Bhakt Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working at the Centre, there should also be an end to corruption in Delhi and a Ram Bhakt should govern here also," Sachdeva said.

State general secretary (organisation) Pawan Rana recited Hanuman Chalisa at a temple near Rouse Avenue court. New Delhi Lok Sabha candidate Bansuri Swaraj attended the programme at a park in Chirag Dilli under the constituency.

Other candidates including Ramvir Singh Bidhuri (South Delhi), Yogendra Chandolia (North West Delhi), Harsh Malhotra (East Delhi) and Kamaljeet Sehrawat (West Delhi, Praveen Khandelwal (Chandni Chowk) also attended Hanuman Chalisa recitals in their respective constituencies.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Police said that the Hanuman Jayanti processions at different parts of the national capital, including Jahangirpuri where a communal clash had broke out two years ago, were taken out peacefully amid tight security.

Delhi Police had beefed up security and paramilitary forces were deployed in Jahangirpuri on Tuesday to keep vigil during the Shobhayatra on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.

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