Ex Bajrang Dal convener Mahendra Kumar joins JD (S)

Ex Bajrang Dal convener Mahendra Kumar joins JD (S)

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Feb 21: The JD(S), which had made it quite clear that it was willing to support the BJP for the sake of power, inducted ex Bajrang Dal convener and chief accused in the church attacks of 2008 Mahendra Kumar into the JD(S) on Sunday in the presence of JD (S) State President Kumaraswamy.

Justifying the move, Kumaraswamy said that the party intends to strengthen secular forces and weaken communal forces in society. While admitting that Christian and Muslim leaders had opposed the induction of Mahendra Kumar into the party, Kumaraswamy said that no modern politician, including him, can claim to have the moral uprightness and firmness of the political leaders of the past.

Mahendra Kumar, who had been imprisoned for some time after he claimed that he was responsible for the church attacks of 2008, said that he had shifted to JD (S) because he wants to “strive for communal harmony.” Simultaneously, he apologized to the Christians for attacking their places of worship and declared that Muslims were “true patriots.”

Meanwhile, Kumaraswamy claims that Higher Education Minister V. S. Acharya played an active role in the church attacks although the Justice B. K. Somashekara Commission has given a clean chit to the BJP and said that he will produce incriminating documents to expose Acharya in 2 – 3 days.