Will the real Sadhvi please stand up: 7,000 ‘sadhus’ doing a havan for Digvijaya Singh makes Bhopal one big saffron blur
Digvijaya Singh was supposed to be the rational, heck, normal candidate standing against Sadhvi Pragya in Bhopal. That's until he invited 7,000 sadhus to do a havan, including a mirchi havan, and 'hot yoga' for him.
As Sadhvi Pragya and Digvijaya Singh lock horns in the much famed #BattleForBhopal, one of them has decided to embrace Hinduism to appease a large vote bank — and no, this time, it’s not Sadhvi Pragya but Digvijaya Singh who's decided to go the ‘Hindu way’ by inviting 7,000 sadhus hailing from 13 akharas in the country for a road show.
The move is particularly surprising because it comes from Digvijaya Singh, apparently the voice of reason in the Battle for Bhopal. While Sadhvi Pragya was running to temples, doing pujas and promoting cow therapy, Digvijaya Singh appeared as a two-time Chief Minister and a candidate relying on his policies and good work to win Bhopal. It's clear Bhopal needed a stable and progressive candidate to stand in opposition to the hyper-nationalistic and highly controversial Sadhvi Pragya.
Both Digvijaya Singh and Sadhvi Pragya were thus at two ends of a spectrum. The battle for Bhopal was between regression and progression — right until this moment.
Now that Digvijaya Singh has apparently invited thousands of Sadhus to ward off the evil spirit that is apparently Sadhvi Pragya, the battle is reduced to Sadhus versus Sadhvi — or, let’s just say, the ignorant versus the highly ignorant.
But it doesn’t even stop here. A certain Swami Vaeragyanand is reportedly doing a mirchi havan to make Digvijaya Singh win the elections. I don’t know about you, but I feel really sorry for the olfactory organs of anyone who’ll be around while this havan is being done. To such swamis, I ask — why stop at desi mirchi? Why not add some red paprika and exotic jalapenos to the mix, so you have the perfect ‘spicy havan’? Maybe even (gasp) bake a pizza while you're at it?
What’s more, seriously? Lots more — seriously. The sadhus at the event will also do ‘hot yoga’ — sounds scandulous, but it isn’t. ‘Hot yoga’ is a style of yoga which is performed in hot and humid conditions. The sadhus will begin performing on May 7 for two days and end the intense yoga session with a road show on May 8.
That’s two full days of sweating it out and burning calories — which is probably the only good thing about the whole havan-cum-road show.
Amidst all the hoopla, I can’t help but ask Digvijaya Singh — why battle ignorance with more ignorance? Why battle saffron terror with a saffron road show? Why use 7,000 sadhus to bring down a sadhvi? Dear Digvijaya Singh, aren't you strong enough — or secular enough — to just have faith in the electoral system and do your work?
If you have to resort to this saffron circus, what exactly is the difference between you and your opponent?
