Meet Updesh Rana who inspired Jamia shooter; he too wants to ‘counter Shaheen Bagh’
The Jamia gunman, in his publications, had written that if he had even half of Updesh Rana followers, he would have turned to counter Shaheen Bagh
Updesh inspired ‘Rambhakt’ Jamia gunman.
Extreme right-wing activist Updesh Rana, whose name appeared in multiple Facebook posts of young people who shot at a student from Jamia on Thursday, plans to launch a dharna in Shaheen Bagh on February 9, to “counter” the protesters’ blockade anti-CAA.
The gunman, in his publications, had written that if he had even half of Rana’s followers, he would have turned Shaheen Bagh into “Jallianwala Bagh.” Rana was arrested in Jaipur in 2017 for a rally proposed in support of Shambhulal Regar, who was accused of killing a Muslim worker in Rajasthan and circulating the video.
Some facebook groups support Updesh Rana and his Youth Brigade.
On Facebook, there are several groups that support Rana, including one with more than 1.25 lakh followers. Another group, with more than 26,000 members, receives around 3,700 publications daily. The group’s description tells Muslims to “stay away”. It asks new members if they are Hindu or not.
Some followers call Jamia gunman “Hindu Lion”
On Friday, the groups saw hundreds of publications in favor of the gunman, demanding his release. Some hailed him as a “Hindu lion.” Many of the young man’s friends and acquaintances, who had published in their Facebook Live sessions before the incident, also published publications demanding his release and addressed to the minority community. Many said the child had made a “mistake” because of his “youth.”
Rana, who runs the Updesh Rana Youth Brigade, said he didn’t know the young man personally, “but he may have met me and taken pictures like others, since I have thousands of followers.” “He also used to send me messages, but I don’t think he ever answered. I’m still not sure why he used my name,” said Rana, who is also a national secretary of a forum called Vishwa Sanatan Sangh.
Updesh Rana and his Youth brigade plan a “Counter to Shaheen bagh” a peaceful way.
Rana said that he has dedicated “Youth Brigade” to social work as “gau sewa”. “I plan to come to Shaheen Bagh on February 9. The police called me yesterday for my plans; However, I have not yet confirmed my presence. We want to launch a dharna counter; We also have women who support us. But ours will be a democratic protest, ”he said.
A Facebook post that supports Rana, people shared and commented him in thousands. He compared the gunman with the Übermensch of Friedrich Nietzsche, or the superman. “Nietzsche writes in his theory of superman that every society needs a superman. Gopal wanted to be that Mahamanav of this Hindu society. His method may have been incorrect, but one must think why he chose this route. He is emotional, angry against the system, ”he said.
TikTok videos celebrating him also surfaced, with visuals of the firing playing in the background. Other posts said he was a “Ram bhakt”, who has taken a “major step”. He took towards providing “azadi” to Jamia and Shaheen Bagh. “All Hindu warriors please come forward to support the Ram bhakt, the one man army,” it says.
Credits to Source article from The Indian Express.