A group in New Delhi known as Hindu Sena (“Hindu Army”) prayed for the safety of U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Tuesday, describing him as the only “global leader” who “has the courage to speak against radical Islam and its followers.”
Trump narrowly survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, so Hindu Sena hung a poster of Trump next to an idol of Baglamukhi — the Hindu goddess of protection — dabbed a vermilion holy mark on Trump’s forehead, and made burnt offerings to pray for the former — and possibly future — president’s life.
Leaving nothing to chance, Hindu Sena priests repeated a healing chant known as the Mahamrityunjay mantra 125,000 times. Priests periodically interrupted the chant, shouting, “Long live…” as the other attendees answered, “Donald Trump!”
The shrine also included a photo of Trump standing next to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the caption, “Friends Forever.” Modi was indeed among the world leaders who had a solid personal relationship with Trump during his first term in office.
Modi said on Monday:
Deeply concerned by the attack on my friend, former President Donald Trump. Strongly condemn the incident. Violence has no place in politics and democracies. Wish him a speedy recovery. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of the deceased, those injured and the American people.
About 50 people attended the ceremony, known as a havan, in New Delhi. The full ceremony is scheduled to continue for a week.
Hindu Sena has been fond of Trump for some time, conducting a celebratory ritual every year on his birthday, June 14. Vishnu Gupta, who founded the group in 2011 and remains its leader, credited the group’s devotion with saving Trump’s life on Saturday evening.
“The bullet hit his ear but didn’t take his life. Because of our prayers, he is still alive,” he said.
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Gupta said the would-be assassin was doubtlessly in league with “jihadi terrorists” who want Trump dead. The Biden administration on Tuesday said it has information that Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, is plotting to assassinate Trump, but that this information did not appear to have any relation to Saturday’s attack.
“We prayed that the enemies of Donald Trump must get wiped out and bestow upon him special blessings,” Gupta said.
Gupta also announced that his group’s head priest has cast Trump’s horoscope and determined he will win the 2024 election. The group said the same thing in 2016, and it was right, which puts it ahead of many American political analysts.
“All the English-speaking television anchors laughed at us, but once election day came, they became serious,” Gupta fondly recalled of Election Day 2016.
Hindu Sena is a small group noted for odd behavior and fiery pronouncements. In September, the group decided to paint black marks over street signs for Babur Road in Delhi because it is named after the Mongol-born first emperor of the Mughal Dynasty in the Sixteenth Century.
Gupta demanded the road be named after “some great Indian personality” instead of a “foreign invader.” It was not the first time Hindu Sena has gone after roads named after Mughal figures from history.
India’s big mainstream Hindu nationalist party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is also fond of Trump and was outraged by the attempt on his life. On Sunday, BJP castigated opposition leader Rahul Gandhi for offering only “insincere” concern over the Trump shooting and blamed him for encouraging violence against Modi.
Other BJP leaders drew parallels from the extreme rhetoric Democrats have used against Trump and criticism of Modi by the main opposition party, known as the Congress Party.
“Now if the consequences of all these rhetorical statements was an assassination bid on Trump’s life, why will it be any different in India?” BJP Social Media Chief Amit Malviya asked in a televised debate.
“Before the Congress claims that their own leaders got assassinated, I want to remind them that they were assassinated for the political decisions that they took,” Malviya added.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh responded by calling Malviya’s insinuations “atrocious, obnoxious, and disgraceful,” especially the part where he suggested Congress politicians have inspired their own assassinations, and demanding Modi fire him immediately.
Many cheap shots were exchanged between both sides, including Congress mocking Modi as “non-biological” (an insult based on Modi saying during the last election that God might have sent him to lead India) and BJP referring to Rahul Gandhi as a “third-time failure” (an insult based on how many times Gandhi has tried to become prime minister).