(CP) – Hundreds of hardline Hindus gathered to protest a planned Jesus statue that will rival Rio de Janeiro’s “Christ The Redeemer” for its size, claiming the structure will go “against the spirit of communal harmony.” On Monday, members of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the hardline parent organization of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, staged protests in the southern state of Karnataka’s Ramanagara district, the Times of India reports.
Carrying saffron flags as around 1,000 police stood by, protesters demanded that the state government reverse its decision to allot land for the proposed 114 foot Jesus statue or face further demonstrations. The Jesus statue is expected to stand atop a hillock named Kapalabetta in Harobele, a village of 3,500 where Christians form a majority. The land is owned by the Archdiocese of Bangalore.
Many Hindus believe the hill where the statue is set to stand is the abode of a Hindu deity, Munieshwara (a form of Lord Shiva). However, no temple currently exists there. “We want to stop (the statue), since it goes against the spirit of communal harmony and encourages religious conversions which is rampantly carried out by Christian missionaries,” Prabhakar Bhat, a top RSS functionary, told Indian media. FULL REPORT
