Swami Maurya calls Hindu religion ‘Dhokha’; U.P. dy CM, SP chief react
Akhilesh Yadav cautions party leaders against such remarks, Keshav Prasad Maurya says SP Maurya wronging himself by making such comments
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya has stoked a controversy yet again saying Hinduism is not a religion but ‘Dhokha’ (deception).
Reacting to Maurya’s Monday comments, party’s national president Akhilesh Yadav advised SP leaders to avoid commenting on religion and caste while addressing the representatives of Kannauj’s Prabuddha Samaj and Maha Brahmin Samaj Panchayat at the party’s state headquarters here later that day.
Meanwhile, deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Tuesday said people like Maurya were wronging themselves by making such statements. Reminding the Samajwadi Party leader of the time when they were in power in Uttar Pradesh, Keshav Prasad Maurya said, “Once upon a time, they were ruling the entire state; now look at the situation they have reached today. There was a time when they were in such good state, now they have deteriorated to a great extent.”
Speaking at the National Buddhist and Bahujan Rights Conference in New Delhi, Swami Prasad Maurya had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and even Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat had started saying the same thing. Speaking at the event, Maurya said: “Hindu ek dhoka hai (Hindu religion is a deception).” However, in the same breath, he tried to justify his statement, citing various views that Hinduism is a way of life.
“In 1995, the Supreme Court said in its order that Hindu is not a religion but a way of life. It is a conglomeration of more than 200 religions. Even Mohan Bhagwat has said more than once that Hindu is not a religion but a way of life. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also said that Hindu is not a religion. Even Gadkari (Union minister Nitin Gadkari) had said the same thing at a media conclave,” said SP Maurya.
When asked by media persons about Maurya’s remark, SP MP from Mainpuri Dimple Yadav said: “It his personal opinion not party’s ideology”. However, SP leader Swami Prasad Maurya questioned why no one’s sentiments get hurt when they say the same thing on Hinduism. “...but When Swami Prasad Maurya says that Hindu is not a religion but a deception and what we refer to as Hindu religion is a business for some people, a storm gets kicked up in the entire country,” Maurya said.
“When the Supreme Court said the same thing in 1995, no one took offence. But when Swami Prasad Maurya says it, FIRs are registered throughout the country,” he said.
“Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas together make up eight per cent of population. These eight per cent cannot form a government on their own. These (8% people) have exploited the backward classes and formed the government in the name of Hindu. For the purpose of votes, we are Hindus. But after forming the government, we are no longer Hindus. If it had been the case, they would have never cancelled reservations for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes or backward castes,” Maurya said. (With Agency Inputs)
