The Allahabad Court Wednesday rejected the petition seeking ban on the five-day programme of evangelist Peter Youngren,which began amid protests by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the local BJP leaders here Wednesday evening. Around 50 VHP and BJP leaders and activists were detained from near the venue K P College Ground a little before the programme began at 5.30 pm. The right-wing groups are up in arms against Youngrens programme alleging it will be used for mass conversions. A Division Bench of acting Chief Justice Sheo Kumar Singh and Justice B K Srivastava rejected the PIL,filed by Akhil Bharatiya Samajik Samarasta Abhiyaan,an outfit headed by VHPs district general secretary Pawan Srivastava. The court rejected the petition on the ground that the VHP had approached the court too late,after all the arrangements for the programme had already been made. Also,it took into account that the district administration granted permission for the programme with certain terms and conditions, said Girijesh Kumar Tripathi,counsel for the petitioner. Apart from alleging that the meetings will be used for mass religious conversions,which is illegal,another contention of the petitioner was that Youngren,being a foreigner,was not authorised to hold a mass meeting in the country. Youngren is here on a conference visa. We submitted before the court that what was being held was not a conference but a massive rally, said Tripathi. The petitioner also submitted that Youngren was claiming to have magical powers for curing maladies. Under the Indian norms,nobody is allowed to claim magical powers for curing illnesses. But our submission was that after the Nagpur meeting,held in April,he claimed to have cured many physically challenged, said Tripathi. The other side was represented by a battery of lawyers and the main argument was led by senior advocate Ravi Kant. He could not be reached for his version. Incidentally,just before the Nagpur programme,the VHP had approached the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on similar lines. That petition,too,was rejected. In the afternoon,BJP and VHP took out a procession from Subhash Chauraha in Civil Lines. As it reached the venue,the police detained the leaders and activists. District BJP chief Ram Raksha Dwivedi,VHPs Pawan Srivastava,Acharya Kush Muni and several other leaders were detained and taken to the Police Lines in a bus, said District BJP spokesperson Dinesh Kumar Tripathi. A senior police official said they were likely to be released later in the evening. The district administration has deployed forces to keep things under control. Youngrens programme will also be videographed to ensure that terms and conditions were not violated. Apart from Jyotishpeeth Shankaracharya Swami Vasudevanand,the head of Baghambari Mutt,Swami Narendra Giri and Swami Kailashanand issued statements saying the programme should not be allowed. Youngren,who held a press conference Tuesday,has already denied the charges,saying he was here just to spread the message of God.
