It has been reported that in the lead-up to the riots that erupted in Gujarat in February, thousands ofweapons were distributed to young volunteers of the Bajrang Dal, the VHP’s paramilitary youth wing. And itis also well known that the funds which paid for these weapons have come from the Hindu diaspora in the West.
In India, there have been repeated questions about the funding of the VHP, which, like its UK and USbranches, claims charitable status. Large sums of money that ought to be helping the poor, rather thanpromoting the interests of any particular religious community, are unaccounted for. Under India’s secularlaws, even constructing a temple cannot be considered a charitable activity. Much of these funds come fromabroad, often by Hindus who believe the money is being used for genuine purposes. With the relative wealth ofmany Hindus in the US IT industry, some estimate the sums involved to be as large as tens of millions ofdollars per year. Although the VHP claims not to receive foreign donations, it has had conferences in NewYork, Copenhagen, Netherlands and Singapore, as well as Milton Keynes, and has conducted fundraising tours ofthe USA. One such tour in 1999 had a target of raising $400,000.
