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VHP to defy 'yatra' ban; BJP plays it safe

Apparently with an eye on the assembly election in Gujarat, the VHP had on Tuesday announced plans to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the demolition of the disputed structure at Ayodhya on December 6 as 'Vijay Diwas' [Victory Day].

Terming as "unfortunate" the decision of the three-member poll panel, VHP senior vice-president Giriraj Kishore said, "It is an infringement of our fundamental right. Lyngdoh's actions show his anti-Hindu bias. Up to now, we have decided to defy the ban order and court arrest."

Kishore said VHP office-bearers were meeting in Ahmedabad later on Wednesday to take a final decision on the issue.

"We have not decided as yet in what form the yatra will proceed, but all that will be finalised later tonight," Praveen Togadia, international general-secretary of the VHP, said in Ahmedabad.

"The meeting will discuss dharmic [religious] rights of the Hindu society that Lyngdoh has violated," Togadia said.

Reacting to the ban, BJP spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that the party would arrive at a decision after studying the commission's order.

"We in the BJP are committed to the holding of the December 12 elections in a free, fair, peaceful and cordial atmosphere," Naqvi said.

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