Patna: Undeterred by the controversy over his remarks that texts just like the Ramcharitmanas are divisive and promote casteism, Bihar schooling minister Chandra Shekhar has mentioned that the sixteenth century epic by Bhakti poet Tulsidas identifies “sure castes that should be crushed up”.
“I’ve the unique Ramcharitmanas printed by the Gita Press when it price simply Rs 8.50. It names sure castes and says they deserved to be crushed up. It additionally dubs sure castes as ‘paapi’ (sinners),” Chandra Shekhar advised ThePrint Tuesday, insisting that none of his statements will be construed as improper or “anti-Hindu”.
“I don’t know what the fuss is about. I’ve maintained that distortions within the Hindu faith have been due to our ancestors. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has gone a step forward and mentioned that the distortions had been brought on by the pandits (clergymen).”
“In Ramayana, Lord Rama sat with a Dalit lady referred to as Shabari and ate fruits tasted by her. Lord Rama gave a strong message on integration of society however then who put divisive phrases in non secular discourse? Even right this moment, the kids of Shabari need to face social stigmas,” he mentioned.
Chandra Shekhar additionally recalled the occasion when a temple in Darbhanga was “washed clear” after a go to by then CM Jitan Ram Manjhi in 2014. “Within the Seventies, a tall Dalit chief just like the late Jagjivan Ram needed to face humiliation when a statue he inaugurated was washed utilizing ‘gangajal’ by some Manuwadis (proponents of Manusmriti) in Varanasi. The social divisions created by books are nonetheless impacting Hindu society. For talking the reality, I’ve been threatened that my tongue will likely be chopped off,” he mentioned.
The Bihar schooling minister additionally identified that the 2011 Socio Financial and Caste Census (SECC) means that there are round 47,000 castes inside Hinduism. “There isn’t any caste within the US, China, France or some other nation on the planet. It is just in India that we discover Hindus divided alongside caste strains,” he mentioned, reiterating that he would follow his stand irrespective of the implications.
Even B.R. Ambedkar burnt copies of the Manusmriti as a result of Dalits and ladies had been forbidden to learn it, he mentioned.
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Chandra Shekhar ‘ill-informed’: JD(U) MLA
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief, addressing the fifteenth convocation of the Nalanda Open College on 12 January, had termed texts just like the Ramcharitmanas and the Manusmriti as “divisive” and mentioned they “promote casteism and hatred towards Dalits and ladies”. Within the context of the Ramcharitmanas, Chandra Shekhar quoted it as saying that “Dhol, Gawar, Shudhra, Pasu, Nari sakal taran ke adhikari”.
On how his remarks snowballed into an issue, he advised ThePrint, “As soon as the controversy arose, my critics say that I’ve distorted the which means of ‘taran’. The ebook I’ve has the which means of the phrase as ‘beating up’.”
Amongst those that supported Chandra Shekhar’s remarks had been former chief minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi and former Bihar meeting speaker Uday Narayan Chaudhary.
However along with his cupboard colleague’s remarks having stirred up a political storm, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar had made his displeasure recognized by saying that one shouldn’t “demean any faith”.
Requested in regards to the controversy, Janata Dal-United (JDU) MLA Sanjeev Kumar advised ThePrint Tuesday that the schooling minister was “ill-informed” and “ought to focus on his division and never mislead the folks on Ramcharitmanas”.
Criticism of Chandra Shekhar for his remarks continued properly into March with MLAs of the Bharatiya Janata Occasion (BJP) staging a walkout from the meeting Monday over the Speaker’s choice to show down their demand for an apology. “The schooling minister is quoting only one line when the Ramayana has many situations the place social unity has been emphasised,” BJP MLA Haribhushan Thakur ‘Bachol’ advised ThePrint.
After the BJP boycotted his tackle on the allocation for schooling in Bihar’s annual price range, Chandra Shekhar had mentioned on the ground of the Home, “I stand by what I’ve mentioned in regards to the Ramcharitmanas. I’ve introduced contained in the Home authentic books and I’m able to debate contained in the Home. The distortion within the Ramcharitmanas needs to be cleaned out. Sadly, those that had been making a hue and cry over the problem have fled the Home.”
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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