Hyderabad: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Goshamahal MLA, T Raja Singh, is preparing to gather more followers using the ‘Aurangzeb Tomb issue’ in Telangana—particularly in districts bordering Maharashtra, where a sizeable Marathi-speaking population resides, Telangana police believe.
Police monitor BJP MLA’s growing activity in Maharashtra-border districts
Police circles in Telangana are closely studying his plans after the three-time BJP MLA, during the Sri Rama Navami Shobha Yatra rally, urged the chief minister of Maharashtra to announce a date for the demolition of the tomb.
“You announce the date, we will walk with spades to the place,” he declared, drawing thunderous applause from the gathering at Siddiamber Bazaar Masjid junction.
Raja Singh has been visiting Maharashtra frequently and, during the Parliamentary elections, requested the BJP leadership to allot him a ticket from either Nanded or Solapur.
Following the violence in Nagpur over the Aurangzeb Tomb issue, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Maharashtra Assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar, blamed Raja Singh and demanded he be banned in Maharashtra for allegedly inciting violence.
Addressing reporters, Wadettiwar said, “If the big-mouthed man has come from Telangana, T Raja Singh should be banned in Maharashtra. He is not even acknowledged by a dog in Telangana, yet he comes here and keeps blabbering, inciting violence. Such worthless people should be shown their place in the first place.”
During the Ramnavami Shobha Yatra, some youngsters were seen holding pictures portraying Chhatrapati Shivaji killing Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
“After the Aurangzeb Tomb issue surfaced, we are closely monitoring developments. Except for Raja Singh and a couple of BJYM leaders, no one is seriously pursuing it. Since it’s a new issue used to gather people and provoke trouble, we are taking all necessary steps to prevent people from heading to districts bordering Maharashtra and causing unrest,” said a senior police official.
Sriram Yuva Sena expected to intensify outreach and membership drive
Raja Singh had long ago floated a group, the Sriram Yuva Sena, to reinforce his identity as a Hindutva leader at the national level. It was also intended to increase his fan following across the country. The group applies for permission to hold the Sri Ramnavami Shobha Yatra and the Hanuman Jayanti Shobha Yatra every year.
The objective of creating the group was to counter religious conversions and prevent cow smuggling or slaughter.
Thakur Raja Singh Lodh was born in Dhoolpet, Hyderabad, and has been associated with Hindu organisations in his locality since childhood. He was part of the RSS and Bajrang Dal before entering politics by winning as a corporator in the Hyderabad municipal corporation on a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) ticket under N Chandrababu Naidu’s leadership.
Even while in TDP, he actively participated in and encouraged Hindu activism in Hyderabad. In fact, some Hindu monks crowned Raja Singh as Hindu Hrudaya Samrat in January 2013, before he joined the BJP.
His uncompromising Hindutva stance helped him emerge as a favourite in his constituency and the sole BJP MLA in the 2018 Assembly election—at a time when the party lost deposits in over 100 of the 119 assembly segments in Telangana.
Raja Singh has also used social media to his advantage, running a popular YouTube channel supported by an army of volunteers. His regular videos are expected to attract more followers, and the Sriram Yuva Sena is likely to launch membership drives soon to expand its base.
