Sing along, Sonu: Why singer has a right to defend Radhe Maa

The moment Sonu Nigam for Radhe Maa, social media bullies snooped down on him. They abused and threatened him, and some even said the singer was an atheist and could that's why make such a statement.

Nigam, perhaps, had not received as many hate messages from people who paid to watch the flop movies he has acted in. But unlike his debut movie Jaani Dushman, which was based on super natural powers, Nigam was talking logic this time.

Nigam did not say Radhe Maa was a saint. He never questioned the allegations of financial misconduct against her or charges of her involvement in a dowry harassment case.

His tweets simply meant that a women's spiritualism should not be judged on the basis of what she wears. And, he is right in asking so because there is no religious book in Hinduism that prescribes a code of conduct for spiritual gurus. It is simply something our generation has assumed watching Ramanand Sagar's popular TV series on Ram and Krishna.

Moreover, if there is a dress code and code of conduct to follow when in public, then godmen should not dance to Bollywood tunes or keep themselves covered all the time too. Rules should be the same for all Babas and Maas.

Most of us have no problems when a Baba dances and shows his magic tricks. Similarly, we accept another Baba's style of spiritualism if he asks his bhakts to eat samosas at a particular place to get their fortune back. There are others who wear jeans and sunglasses and dance to the Bollywood tunes. But a woman wearing a red short dress is not acceptable.

If you go through the comments section of the stories on Radhe Maa, the hatred against is more about her red wardrobe and her dancing than her claims of interacting with God.

Right from when Radhe Maa's name surfaced in a dowry harassment case, one could see that high-profile commentators, appearing in prime time television debates, were more interested in proving that a godwoman cannot wear such clothes than discussing the larger question of fake spiritual gurus. No one discussed what mindset breeds such fake godmen and women? How can anyone become a spiritual guru in India?

Even Twitter users were interested in her wardrobe rather than her dubious claims. Remember the popular hashtag #YoRadhemaaSoRed?

Very few of us actually know what is the exact accusation against Radhe Maa. But, everyone knows about her red dress.

In a country where the victim is blamed after being raped, the nature of accusations against Radhe Maa is not a surprise. The fact that she is not unashamed about her wardrobe is even larger a concern.

(The views expressed by the writer are personal. He tweets as