New Delhi: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal have been classified as religious millitant outfits in CIA’s World Factbook. The two organisations have been categorised under ‘Political pressure groups’ in the document.
Apart from VHP and Bajrang Dal, the Rashtriya Swayamasevak Sangh (RSS) also finds mention as a ‘nationalist organisation’. All Parties Hurriyat Conference in Kashmir is listed as a separatist group while the Jamiat Ulema e-Hind is listed as a ‘religious organisation’.
The World Factbook is an annual publication of the US’s intelligence organisation CIA, which provides “information on the history, people, government, economy, energy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities”.
According to reports, the VHP and Bajrang Dal are exploring legal options to get the tags removed.