Mangaluru: “There have been allegations that women are not considered equal to men in the Hindu religion. The Hindu religion doesn’t say that women are equal to men, but that they are always above men,” said 13-year-old orator Harika Manjunath on Sunday, October 13.
Delivering a keynote address at the foundation day celebration of ‘Durgavahini’, a women’s wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), organised here at the Kadri grounds, Harika said, “There are a lot of instances where our ancestors have given more priority to women than men. We worship Goddesses like Lakshmi, Saraswathi and Navadurgas in our country, which is a clear example for a woman’s position in the Hindu religion.”
She clarified that the Hindu religion doesn’t support violence and that it believes in peace. “However, the followers of the Hindu religion will not tolerate it if someone attacks them without reason. In order for justice to prevail, it is inevitable for them to counterattack those who attack them. Lord Krishna also preached the same to Arjuna during the Mahabharatha battle,” she added.
While delivering the introductory speech, Vidya Mallya of the Durgavahini said that over 5,500 Durgavahini committees are working in the entire country and that over 50 committees are working in the Dakshina Kannada district alone. “Members of the Durgavahini remind our people about the necessity of following our rich culture and tradition,” she said.
Earlier, the members took out a massive procession from the Bunts Hostel circle, wearing the saffron ‘Peta’ and performing bhajans and dances throughout.
VHP regional president M B Puranik presided over the programme. VHP regional co-convener Krishnamurthy, district president Mohan Kuttar, MRPL Deputy General Manager Lakshmi M Kumaran, office bearers of Durgavahini like Anitha Kini, Prajna Acharya and others were present.
