Former Uttar Pradesh Minister Sidharth Nath Singh launched a scathing attack on Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and challenged him to throw out SP leader Swami Prasad Maurya from the party over his remarks on Ramcharitmanas.
While talking to ANI, Sidharth Nath Singh said, "Swami Prasad Maurya has been continuously targeting the Hindu religion, Hindu beliefs and Ramcharitmanas. The Samajwadi Party keeps saying that it is not associated with the statements of Maurya. I ask Akhilesh Yadav to stop running away from the statements made by Maurya and distance himself from him."
"If Akhilesh Yadav has the guts and respects the Hindus, their beliefs and Ramcharitmanas then throw out Swami Prasad Maurya from the party. Only then will we believe that Akhilesh Yadav does not support the statements made by Swami Prasad Maurya."
Swami Prasad Maurya is considered a prominent OBC leader (Samajwadi Party) in Uttar Pradesh and had sought a ban on the work composed by the 16th-century poet-saint Tulsidas alleging that Dalits and women have been "insulted" in Ramcharitmanas.
Speaking to ANI, Maurya had said, "I don't have any issue with Ramcharitmanas but parts of it have insulting comments and sarcasm directed at particular castes and sects. Those should be removed."
"The government should take effective action and show sensitivity. It should see that the sentiments of any community are not hurt," he added.
The former UP minister also termed the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a Pakistan-sponsored activity supported by the Congress.
He said, "Kerala Congress has shown the documentary which clearly states that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' is actually 'Bharat Todo Yatra'. Congress is trying to humiliate PM Modi and the country like Pakistan and the international media."
Notably, UK's British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) aired a two-part series attacking PM Modi's tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister during the Gujarat riots of 2002. The documentary sparked outrage and was removed from select platforms.
In a strong rebuttal to the BBC documentary on Modi, more than 300 eminent Indians, including retired judges, bureaucrats, and armed forces veterans signed a statement slamming the British national broadcaster for showing "unrelenting prejudice" towards India and its leader.
( With inputs from ANI )
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