‘Now, are they not terrorists?’: SP Maurya on Hindu leader, seer's rewards to behead, cut his tongue off
SP Maurya recently stirred up a controversy after he demanded a ban on the epic Ramcharitmanas claiming certain verses of it show backward classes and dalits in bad light.
Referring to Hindu Mahasabha leader's monetary reward to cut off his tongue over his comments on epic Ramcharitmanas, Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya has asked why such people are not seen as “terrorists and butchers”.
Maurya, who recently stirred up a controversy after he demanded a ban on the epic claiming certain verses of it show backward classes and dalits in bad light, further stated that if such remarks are made by individuals of “any other religion” they are termed as terrorists.
“If a person from any other religion would've talked about beheading someone or chopping off someone's tongue, they would've been branded as terrorists. If mahants are talking about beheading me and chopping off my tongue, are they not terrorists and butchers?” he told news agency ANI.
His response comes after a local leader of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha on Monday announced a reward of ₹51,000 to anyone who would “cut off” the SP leader's tongue.
“Any courageous person, if they cut off the tongue of SP leader Swami Prasad Maurya, would be rewarded with a ₹51,000 cheque. He has insulted our religious text and hurted the sentiments of Hindus,” the mahasabha's district in-charge Saurabh Sharma said.
Members of the Hindu outfit also carried a symbolic funeral procession of Maurya, burnt his effigy and threw it into the Yamuna river.
Furthermore, Ayodhya seer Jagadguru Paramhans on Friday demanded immediate action against Maurya over his comments. The seer added that he would give a reward of ₹500 to anyone who will bring the SP leader's head as this is ‘status’.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken a swipe at the former UP minister over his comments, saying it was deliberately made to split Hindus and for religious appeasement.
Amid this controversy, Maurya met SP supremo Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday and later told reporters that the former will “make a statement at the right time”, ANI quoted him as saying.
Though Yadav has not spoken about the matter, it is believed that he is unhappy over Maurya's remarks. Several SP MLAs have distanced themselves from Maurya.
(With inputs from PTI)