'Ban Samajwadi Party': BJP reacts to Swami Prasad Maurya's remarks on Hinduism

The BJP has demanded that Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav be charged for his party leader Swami Prasad Maurya's latest controversial remark on Hinduism.

Addressing a Bahujan event on Monday, Swami Prasad Maurya had called Hindu religion "a deception".

"RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has said twice that there is no religion called Hindu but instead, it is a way of living. Prime Minister Modi has also said that there is no Hindu religion. Sentiments don't get hurt when these people make such statements but if Swami Prasad Maurya says the same, it causes unrest,” Maurya said.

Reacting to his statement, BJP MP Shubrat Pathak said, "Swami Prasad Maurya has again made controversial statements against Hindu religion. It is Akhilesh Yadav and Sonia Gandhi who are emboldening him. INDIA alliance leaders are repeatedly making anti-Hindu statements. But we cannot tolerate this anymore. I request the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh to register an FIR against Akhilesh Yadav."

"I would also request the election commission to take note of statements made by Swami Prasad Maurya and impose a ban on the Samajwadi Party," Pathak said.

BJP MP Sushil Kumar Modi said, "People of INDIA alliance such as Swami Prasad Maurya, Udhayanidhi Stalin...all of these are up to insulting Sanatana Dharma and Hindu religion. Swami Prasad spoke a lot about Ramcharitmanas. They think that by abusing the Hindu religion, they'll get the votes of backward communities, but they forget that people from backward communities worship Lord Ram and Lord Krishna more than others."

BJP's IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya said, "After DMK’s Udhayanidhi Stalin vowed to annihilate Sanatana Dharma, it is now SP leader Swami Prasad Maurya, who spews venom on Hinduism. Why are I.N.D.I Alliance leaders targeting the Hindus? Why haven’t Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi condemned these hate speeches, so far?"

This is not the first time Swami Prasad Maurya has been in hot waters for his remarks on Hinduism. In May this year, the UP Police filed a chargesheet against Swami Prasad Maurya for his remarks on Ramcharitmanas, a religious text in Hinduism. He had also called Hinduism a "hoax".

AKHILESH YADAV, CONGRESS REACT

Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav has advised his leaders to refrain from making comments on religion and caste.

Kannauj MP and Akhilesh Yadav's wife Dimple Yadav said, "There is no involvement of the party...BJP is saying anything, but I want to say that those are his (Swami Maurya's) personal statements.

Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai also said, "They should not make such statements, especially about Hinduism. Akhilesh ji should take action. We are followers of Sanatana Dharma, and we did not like this statement."