Chennai: Charging the Congress, AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) and DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) with playing "minority vote-bank politics" in view of the coming polls in some States, VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) general secretary Pravin Togadia today (Nov 15, 2004) said it was a "deep rooted political conspiracy" that has led to the arrest of Kanchi Seer Jayendra Saraswathi.

"Arrest of Jayendra is a political conspiracy to get minority votes during the Assembly elections in Bihar, Jharkhand and Haryana. Congress, DMK and AIADMK are on the same side on this," he told reporters after a meeting organised by VHP in Chennai demanding that the Shankaracharya be released.

Demanding that the Seer be released immediately and that the State Government apologise for arresting him, Togadia also wanted to know who had ordered the income tax department to probe the accounts of the Kanchi Kamakoti mutt at Kancheepuram. "What is the purpose of taking our Hindu Seer into custody? Is it with a view to finish the Hindus?" he asked.

"Even Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has not said a word about the arrest. Under what pressure has she done this. She is interested in getting the DMK's vote-bank, that is why she has acted against the Hindus," he said.

On Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement that law should take its own course in the matter, Togadia asked whether the Centre would arrest Imam Bukhari, who had "several cases against him."

Asked whether he would ask parties like BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) not to ally with anti-Hindu parties, Togadia said he would demand that all those parties who were "believed to be custodians of Hindus" should not ally with the "betrayers of the Hindus."

He said VHP would soon decide the next course of action if the Shankaracharya was not released.

Earlier, addressing the gathering of workers from BJP, VHP, RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) and Hindu Munnani, Togadia sought to know from Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekara Reddy, who had permitted him from Delhi to allow the arrest of Shankaracharya.

"I am asking this because Reddy has said he had contacted the Central Government before the arrest. We Hindus have a right to know who gave the permission. While they show courage to arrest Shankaracharya, will they have the same courage to arrest the Imam. What is the role of the Central Government in the Shankaracharya's arrest?" he asked.

Reacting to the statement of the CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) that VHP was attempting to "communalise" the arrest, he wanted to know why that party did not demand the Imam's arrest.