Author:
Publication: www.HindusOfHouston.org
Date:
"Hindus of Greater Houston" would
like to caution the Houston Hindu community and the broader community about
a visit this week by Agnivesh, a touring charlatan who passes for a Swami
(Hindu monk) and dresses in saffron robes to hoodwink gullible people. Far
from being a Swami, this imposter is a notorious Hindu-hater who has been
expelled over a decade ago from the Arya Samaj, a world-wide and well respected
Hindu organization.
In the February 1994 issue of Hinduism Today,
a widely accepted and non-controversial magazine, the Arya Samaj warned its
members in India and abroad to be careful about Agnivesh, who had been a disruptive
force in the organization. The Arya Samaj General Secretary, Sachidanand Shastri
said that Agnivesh a.k.a Vepa Shyam Rao, was expelled "some years back
on charges of corruption and indiscipline," adding that published reports
of his election to the Sarvadeshik Arya Pratinidhi Sabha (World Council of
Arya Samaj) are untrue. Calling it a "dirty game" aimed at grabbing
Arya Samaj properties and destabilizing the Sarvadeshik Sabha, Shastri promised
legal action if this pretender continued in his ways.
Yet Agnivesh claims to be the President of
the 'World Council of Arya Samaj' . This is a travesty. He is abusing the
freedom of religion in India by claiming to be part of Arya Samaj. In spite
of his expulsion, Agnivesh claims to be part of this organization to give
him credibility and hijack the Arya Samaj's spiritual legacy of 130 years.
Rajinder Gandhi, President of the Arya Pratinidhi
Sabha America, stresses that Agnivesh will not be invited to speak at any
Arya Samaj forum in the USA, for the above reasons and also because the latter's
past actions have created discord between Arya Samaj and other Hindu organizations.
Mr. Gandhi points to Agnivesh's unwillingness to speak against the Christian
missionary activities targeting Hindus and against the Muslim atrocities against
Hindus in Kashmir and other parts of India.
What makes Agnivesh a very dangerous man is
his unconditional support to evangelical proselytization and Islamist separatism
in India. He is now associated with hate-mongering organizations which are
anti-Hindu. He has become a favorite poster-boy of anti-Hindu hate-groups
in India and abroad. Agnivesh co-wrote a rabid, hate-mongering book called
"Harvest of Hate" along with a Christian evangelist, in order to
paint the Hindus of India in an unfavorable light. The book is totally anti-Hindu
and thus does not in any way promote inter-religious harmony.
In recent years, he celebrated the arrest
of the Kanchi Shankaracharya and opposed the Indian Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan
Singh's plea for a fair and honest probe of the now-disproved allegations
against the Kanchi seer. Agnivesh's distorted views about Hindus and Hinduism
do not end here. He openly calls himself a devotee of Marx and a political
swami who doesn't have any religion. Indeed, he is also a scheming Indian
politician and a parliamentary candidate of the Janata Dal party which has
actively worked to foment social dissension and religious hatred in India.
In 2002, Houston witnessed another con-man,
the 'fake' Shankaracharya (Adhokshjanand), an Indian criminal whose American
tour was sponsored by anti-Hindu and Islamist organizations. This criminal
assaulted Ashok Dhingra, then President-Elect of India Culture Center-Houston
with a stick and ran away to India within two days of the incident.
"Hindus of Greater Houston" strongly
appeals to all other Hindu organizations and temples in North America to warn
its members about this self-proclaimed 'Swami' Agnivesh who has a disreputable
history of anti-Hindu activities. Such hate-mongers must be prevented from
gaining ground, raising funds and garnering publicity amongst unsuspecting
members of the Hindu-American community and the larger community, while stealthily
working against the interests of Hindu Dharma.
"Hindus of Greater Houston" is a
tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization active in the community for the last
15 years. For more information, visit the website at: _www.HindusOfHouston.org_
(http://www.hindusofhouston.org/)