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Viewing cable 08NEWDELHI2631, THE POLITICS OF BANNING THE BAJRANG DAL

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
08NEWDELHI2631 2008-10-01 13:14 2011-08-30 01:44 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy New Delhi
VZCZCXRO6038
OO RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHNE #2631/01 2751314
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 011314Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
TO RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3649
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 002631 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2018 
TAGS: IN KDEM KWIR PGOV PHUM PINR PREL PTER SOCI
SUBJECT: THE POLITICS OF BANNING THE BAJRANG DAL 
 
REF: A. A) NEW DELHI 2513 
     B. B) NEW DELHI 2498 C) NEW DELHI 2556 
 
Classified By: POLCOUNS TED OSIUS FOR REASONS 1.4 (B AND D) 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY. Recent violence against Christians in 
Karnataka spurred on by members of the Hindu militant group 
Bajrang Dal has renewed calls to ban the group.  This issue 
has become entwined with the UPA government's consideration 
of a variety of measures to strengthen the GOI's ability to 
combat terrorism, in the wake of the September 13 terrorist 
strikes in Delhi.  While a ban on the Bajrang Dal would help 
consolidate support for the Congress Party among Muslims and 
Christians, it would potentially alienate sections of the 
Hindu community. Similarly, the BJP has a fine line to walk, 
having to distance itself from the Bajrang Dal so it can 
become more attractive to the mainstream polity but not 
disowning the Dal and losing its electoral base of Hindutva 
hardliners.  The BJP relies on the Dal for help in 
campaigning, and BJP leader Advani, despite making the right 
noises, is unlikely to support a ban that would alienate a 
core constituency within the Sangh Parivar.  Post sees an 
opportunity in the upcoming visit of the Secretary to 
emphasize USG concerns about the potential for religious 
violence during the run-up to national elections. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
Congress: Considering the Politics of a Ban 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
2. (C) Longstanding but mostly perfunctory demands for a ban 
on the militant Hindu youth organization, Bajrang Dal, 
gathered renewed momentum in September after media reported 
that members were complicit in fueling attacks on churches in 
Karnataka (Ref B).  The National Commission for Minorities 
supported a ban after its fact-finding team sent to 
investigate the Karnataka violence determined the Bajrang 
Dal's involvement.  Stories also surfaced about the alleged 
role of Bajrang Dal followers in inciting attacks on 
Christian churches and homes in Orissa (Ref A), strengthening 
the arguments of those who favor such a ban.  While the 
violence against Christians triggered the most recent calls 
for GOI action against the organization, the issue has 
assumed greater importance and attention due to identity and 
vote bank politics involving Muslim and Christian voters in 
the run-up to parliamentary elections next year and in the 
aftermath of a series of terrorist bomb blasts that have 
sharply intensified the Indian public's concerns about 
terrorism. 
 
3. (C) Following the September 13 serial terrorist strikes in 
Delhi, the UPA came under fierce fire from the media and 
opposition parties over its handling of terrorism (Ref C). 
In response, sensing that terrorism as a political issue was 
gaining traction to its disadvantage, the UPA government 
publicly considered a variety of measures to strengthen the 
GOI's ability to combat terrorism.  These proposals have 
caused some anxiety within the Muslim community, which often 
sees itself as the unfair victim of the police's anti-terror 
campaigns.  The discomfort in the community was further 
heightened by a police encounter with alleged terrorists in a 
predominantly Muslim neighborhood of Delhi on September 19. 
The shoot-out, which lasted several hours and was covered 
live on television, resulted in the deaths of two Muslim 
youth and one police officer.  Although there is little 
evidence to support it, many in the Muslim community believe 
that the encounter was staged by the GOI to buttress its 
terror-fighting credentials, the two Muslim youth were 
innocent, and the police officer had been killed earlier by 
fellow officers over old internecine police quarrels. 
 
4. (C) In this context, the issue of banning the Bajrang Dal 
is seen by many proponents as a signal of reassurance that 
tougher anti-terrorism proposals are not targeted against any 
single community.  It also helps balance the GOI's existing 
ban on the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) for its 
alleged involvement in terrorist incidents.  Supporters of 
the ban argue that the Dal's violent actions and extremist 
views fit the profile of other extremist groups such as SIMI. 
 Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh said, "It is part of 
the same coin just like SIMI and it should be banned."  The 
association of the Bajrang Dal with the Karnataka and Orissa 
anti-Christian violence makes it easier to justify such a ban 
in terms that go beyond merely addressing the Muslim 
minority's concerns.  In pure political terms, a ban on the 
Bajrang Dal helps consolidate support for the Congress Party 
among its Muslim and Christian voting blocks.  Outlawing the 
Bajrang Dal would be especially welcomed by some of the 
Congress Party's regional allies, particularly the Samajwadi 
Party which has a strong Muslim vote bank based in Uttar 
 
NEW DELHI 00002631  002 OF 003 
 
 
Pradesh. 
 
------------------------------ 
BJP: Saying the Right Things 
------------------------------ 
 
5. (C) Heading into an election, the BJP does not want to be 
tarred by the extremist activities of hardline members of the 
Bajrang Dal, which alienate moderate voters and undercut the 
modern mainstream image the party needs to project in order 
to return to power.  On September 24, BJP Leader L.K. Advani 
made a strong pitch in favor of religious freedoms, firmly 
rejecting the idea of a ban on religious conversions. 
Prohibiting "forced" conversions had been a popular move in 
many states because of its appeal to many voters concerned 
about India's Hindu identity.  Instead, Advani called for a 
national debate on conversions. He further stated that, "In 
our country there can be no justification for violence or 
vandalism in the name of religion." 
 
6. (C) Advani's remarks came as analysts began to notice and 
highlight the absence of any comment by the BJP leadership on 
the Orissa and Karnataka violence.  Some analysts observed 
that his comments were fully consistent with the moderate and 
mainstream politician that Advani has become in the last 
decade.  While Advani's remarks were welcomed by the liberal 
and secular slice of the Indian polity, no one took them to 
imply any endorsement of a ban on the Bajrang Dal.  Indeed, 
most analysts believe the BJP will strongly oppose a ban on 
the Bajrang Dal because it is a part of the Sangh Parivar and 
many of its members are likely to be active supporters of the 
BJP during elections, sometimes providing security for 
certain BJP candidates.  In the past, some Bajrang Dal 
leaders have also been accommodated within the BJP and have 
contested Lok Sabha and state assembly elections on the party 
ticket. 
 
------------------------------------------- 
Comment: Both Parties Walking a Fine Line 
------------------------------------------- 
 
7. (C) Both the Congress Party and the BJP are treading a 
delicate line on dealing with the Bajrang Dal.  For the 
Congress Party (and the UPA), a ban on the Dal would no doubt 
mobilize support within the Muslim and Christian communities. 
 Such a move, however, could cost the Congress with sections 
of the Hindu electorate who would see the ban as yet another 
example of "minority appeasement," a political whip the BJP 
would love to lash the Congress with in the elections.  A ban 
could also re-energize other organizations in the Sangh 
Parivar to join the electoral fight against a party that is 
mounting an attack on one of their own.  For the BJP, cutting 
the Bajrang Dal lose would hurt it dearly within its 
electoral base, the Hindutva hardliners.  However, public 
defense of the Bajrang Dal and its tactics would undermine 
the efforts of the BJP to cast itself as a mainstream party 
with broad-based support.  It would also scare away potential 
BJP allies and coalition partners.  In the end, it may turn 
out that the Congress Party is only bluffing on the Bajrang 
Dal ban and believes that merely talk about it helps 
strengthen its appeal with the Muslim and Christian 
minorities.  If the Congress does decide to outlaw the 
Bajrang Dal, it would be a clear signal that the party is not 
afraid of being painted as a purveyor of identity politics in 
the coming elections and is willing to confront the minority 
coddling issue head-on. 
 
----------------- 
Recommendation 
----------------- 
 
8. (C) Post sees an opportunity during the Secretary's visit 
to convey USG concerns about violence against religious 
minorities, especially in her meeting with L.K. Advani. 
President Bush touched on the issue of violence against 
religious minorities with Prime Minister Singh in Washington 
last week, and the European Union also raised similar 
concerns during the recent EU-India meeting in Marseilles. 
The Secretary's trip could further underscore how religious 
violence blemishes India's standing as a multi-ethnic, 
multi-religious democracy. Post believes it is important that 
India's political leaders hear this message, especially in 
what looks to be the run-up to a hotly contested 
parliamentary election next year. 
 
--------------------------- 
Background on Bajrang Dal 
--------------------------- 
 
9. (U) The Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of the Hindu 
organization, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). Founded in 
 
NEW DELHI 00002631  003 OF 003 
 
 
1984, the Dal's slogan is "service, safety, and culture." One 
of its goals is to build several Hindu temples at religious 
sites whose ownership is currently disputed, including in 
Ayodhya where Hindu mobs--including Dal volunteers--destroyed 
a mosque in December 1992.  Other goals include protection of 
India's Hindu identity from the perceived dangers of 
communism, Muslim demographic growth, and Christian 
conversion.  Although the organization's website states the 
Bajrang Dal does not ascribe to violence or any unlawful 
activity, many observers see the Dal as the most militant 
among the Sangh Parivar family of Hindu organizations.  Human 
Rights Watch has implicated Dal members in 2002's anti-Muslim 
riots in Gujarat. 
 
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