2 Hindu leaders to campaign against Modi

Two key Hindu religious leaders have announced they will campaign against Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in the temple town of Varanasi from where he is contesting the parliamentary election.
Puri Shankaracharya Swami Adhokshjanand Devtirath blamed Modi for the 2002 Gujarat riots and Dwarka Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has also been his critic since long.
"I will go to Varanasi and expose Modi," Swami Adhokshjanand told the media on Thursday, adding those who divide people to come to power should be exposed.
Modi is pitted against Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal and Congress candidate Ajai Rai in Varanasi. Polling in the constituency will be held later this month.
Swami Adhokshjanand said he would not campaign for any particular party but just wanted that secular parties should win.
Aides of Swami Swaroopanand said the octogenarian pontiff would not be able to personally campaign against Modi due to his poor health and age but his close associate Swami Avi Mukteswaranand would do so on his behalf.
He had protested with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS, the BJP's ideological mentor, against 'Har Har Modi' slogan inspired by a Hindu religious incantation, saying it amounted to "worship" of a man and "God will stop Modi" if it was not stopped.
Sensing a religious controversy, Modi had immediately asked his supporters to refrain from raising such slogans.
The Puri Shankaracharya said Modi has committed "sins" and no justice-loving person can ever "like" him.
The Shankaracharya said he had himself gone to Gujarat and witnessed the situation after the 2002 riots which left 1000 people, mostly Muslims, dead.           
He charged that RSS, the spiritual fountainhead of BJP, used religion in order to mislead the people and BJP leaders were already issuing statements which were creating tension in the country.