Sadhvi Deva Thakur, a self-proclaimed Indian god-woman and Hindu nationalist leader. She is the vice-president of a fringe Hindu organisation All India Hindu Mahasabha.

Thakur was born and grew up in Bras, a small village in Karnal district in Haryana, and a few years ago set up an ashram in her village. She has a small following and most of her followers are local villagers.

She believes that India is a Hindu nation where minorities have no place. In 2015, she said that Muslims and Christians must undergo sterilisation to restrict their growing populations.

“The population of Muslims and Christians is growing every day. To control this, the government should bring in a law to stop Muslims and Christians from producing so many children. They should be forced to undergo sterilisation so that they can’t increase their numbers,” she told a gathering.

In another controversial remark, the DNA newspaper quoted her as saying that idols of Hindu gods and goddesses should be placed in mosques and churches and that a statue of Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi, should be installed in Haryana.

In 2016, she was arrested by the police for firing celebratory shots at a wedding which led to the death of one person and injuries to another three.