WASHINGTON: Two Hindu groups in India – Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal have been categorised as “militant religious outfits” while Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was referred to as a nationalist organisation by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Changes in update to the CIA World Factbook triggered widespread protests in India after the categorisation of Hindu groups as militant religious outfits and showcasing a part of Indian held Kashmir as part of Pakistan on a map.
Protests said that the changes “exposed the CIA’s anti-India” stance and critcised the categorisation of Hindu groups as militant organisations, arguing that the CIA itself “spreads terror across the world for the benefit of America.”
The classification of All Parties Hurriyat Conference as a “separatist group” also angered protesters who said it should have been categorised as a terrorist organisation.
VHP leader Pravin Togadhia and RSS leader Moham Bhagwat were referred as among those who lead “numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organisation; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy.”
