Political tension has increased in Bihar as state Education Minister Chandra Shekhar has once again stoked controversy with his comments comparing ancient scriptures such as the Ramcharitmanas to “potassium cyanide”. The RJD leader’s comments have created fresh uproar in the state, with the NDA attacking Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the larger INDIA bloc over the issue.
“It is not just my opinion, but even the great Hindi writer Nagarjuna and socialist thinker Ram Manohar Lohia have said that the Ramcharitmanas contains many regressive thoughts,” the RJD said at an event on Thursday.
The pastor admitted that “there are many wonderful things in the scriptures,” but quickly added, “If 55 dishes are served at a banquet with a dash of potassium cyanide, the food becomes unfit for consumption.”
As the comments attracted criticism on social media platforms, the minister alleged that his comments were about caste discrimination. He alleged that even though he is being threatened with physical violence for his statement, no one speaks up when similar concerns are raised by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.
The Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government quickly distanced itself from the RJD leader’s comments. “The Constitution means that all religious beliefs must be given equal respect. Some people say things without any clear purpose other than to be in the limelight, which we disapprove of,” said Abhishek Jha, state spokesperson of JD(U).
‘Mental perversion’ showcase: BJP
The comments drew sharp reactions from NDA partners in Bihar-BJP and LJP. The BJP leaders condemned the comments with the Bihar Leader of Opposition (LoP) calling it “mental perversion”.
“…Where does it say in the Constitution that secularism means misusing one’s own religion…This is mental perversion…” said Bihar LoP Vijay Sinha.
“I would suggest that you keep one guru, read every line of the Ramayan and understand the essence of every word and then comment on the Ramayan-Mahabharat…They should not say such things… This represents their sick mentality…This represents an Appeasement mentality…Mahabharat and Ramayan are not cyanide…Appeasement, corruption and governments giving shelter to criminals are cyanide…’ said Bihar leader and Union Minister Nityanand Rai.
“…He is the Minister of Education of that state where the courses have not ended for years. Where the quality of primary education is degrading. Where there is no infrastructure and benches for students…By making these controversial statements, everyone identifying that this will create division in the society…For once, the Education Minister tried to know why students of Bihar are trying to commit suicide in Kota…’ said LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan.
(With input from agencies)
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Updated: Sep 15, 2023 4:52 PM IST
