Agnivesh joined the Arya Samaj in 1968 and took the vow of s"annyasa" in 1970. Even though he was expelled by Arya Samaj in 1976, he continued to claim fidelity to the ideas of the organisation. Arya Samaj said in 2008, that 17 of the 19 "Arya Samaj Pratinidhi Sabhas" in India had expressed opposition to him. According to the "Sarvadeshik Arya Pratinidhi Sabha", Agnivesh had been voted out of the Arya Samaj but he claimed that it had not affected his activities within the Arya Samaj.