In the procession, out of several tableaux, one was dedicated to Shambhu Lal Regar – the man who is in Jodhpur jail for hacking and burning a Muslim labourer. A man, impersonating the murder-accused posed with a pickaxe in his hand and another posed as the victim and lay on the ground.
A flex message hailed the hate crime accused as someone who had tried to fight 'love-jihad'.
"Wake up Hindu brothers, save your sister and daughter; Nation should be liberated of love jihad," the message, in Hindi, said.
It hailed Shambhu as someone who tried to eliminate ‘love-jihad’.
A man who resembles Regar is seen seated on a throne-like chair with a pickaxe in his hand on the tableau. The impersonator is dressed in clothes similar to what Regar was wearing when he hacked Muslim labourer.
Shockingly, some of the organisers defended the brazen eulogising of a hate-crime accused.
Mahaveer Singh, an office bearer of Vishva Hindu Parishad, justified the inclusion of the controversial tableaux in the procession.
Terming "love-jihad" a big and serious issue, the VHP leader said if the government did not take any action and came out with a law pertaining to this matter, the country will be on the brink of a civil-war like situation.
The government needs to be serious and act before this issue pushes the country to the brink of a civil war.Mahaveer Singh, office bearer, Vishva Hindu Parishad
Regar, he said, was an under-trial and could not be declared a criminal.
Similarly, Hari Singh, an office bearer of Shiv Sena, who was also a part of the organising committee, expressed pride in Regar's act.
He brought to the attention of all Hindus the issue of Love Jihad, which is a more serious matter of the time than even cancer. He did it for the Hindu community and it wasn’t wrong.Hari Singh, Office Bearer, Shiv Sena
Meanwhile, the police swung into action and began gathering information about the incident.
“We have learnt about this tableau and have begun an investigation into the matter," said a senior police official.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)