Ritlal Yadav, a member of the Bihar legislative assembly from Rashtriya Janata Dal has issued a controversial statement regarding the Ramcharitmanas. He stated that the holy text was written in a mosque. He also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of creating a rift in society in the name of Hindutva.
“You are attempting to incite hostility among the communities. How much longer will this last? Ram Temple was formerly discussed. If you remember, the Ramcharitmanas was penned in a mosque. Look into the past. No threat existed to our Hindutva at that time. Our Hindutva wasn’t in danger back when the Mughals ruled over us for such a long duration,” he asked.
The legislator charged, “Where were they when an 18-year-old girl won the Bhagavad Katha contest globally? Why were they not speaking up that a Muslim girl promoted Bhagavad Katha as well as absorbed it? People should also learn from it. If you are a true flag bearer of Hindutva then expel all the Muslims from your party. Why did you introduce the triple talaq bill?”
'रामचरितमानस मस्जिद में बैठकर लिखा गया था': RJD विधायक
— Bihar Tak (@BiharTakChannel) June 16, 2023
राजद विधायक रीतलाल यादव ने मानस ग्रंथ पर विवादित बयान दिया है और कहा है कि रामचरितमानस मस्जिद में बैठकर लिखा गया था, तब तो हिंदुत्व खतरे में नहीं था? यादव यहीं नहीं रुके, और आगे कहा कि अगर इतना ही हिंदुत्व का सहभागी बनना है… pic.twitter.com/0G7kVYAJ5K
Ritlal Yadav has come under criticism from Janata Dal (United), the ruling alliance partner of RJD in Bihar. Abhishek Jha, a party’s spokesperson, mentioned people speak according to their convenience. “These types of claims need to be avoided because this sends the wrong message to the public. Anyone is free to practise any religion. This a personal matter of the people. This kind of agenda suits the BJP. They create tension in the name of religion.”
A BJP spokesman, Prem Ranjan Patel also refuted Ritlal Yadav’s argument and pointed out that Sanatan Dharma is the oldest religion in the world. “People from all over the world have embraced its culture. It is ignorant to speak against such a religion. Those who use Ramcharitmanas in their speech must be knowledgeable. Collect the right information first before discussing Ramayana’s formation.”
Notably, there has been a rain of similar utterances from several politicians in the country. The education minister of Bihar, Chandra Shekhar, who is also from the RJD, recently stoked outrage when he remarked that Ramcharitmanas spreads hate in the society. He declared that it should be burnt like Manusmruti because it spreads hatred in society.
“A nation becomes great with love and affection. Books like Ramcharitmanas, Manusmriti and Madhav Sadashivrao Golwalkar’s Bunch of Thoughts sowed the seeds of hatred and social divide. This is the reason why people burnt Manusmriti and took exception to a portion of Ramcharitmanas, which talks against education for Dalits, backwards and women,” he voiced while addressing the 15th convocation ceremony of Nalanda Open University.
A member of a State Legislative Council (MLC) from the Samajwadi Party, Swami Prasad Maurya caused a major uproar when he alleged that several crores of people have not read Ramcharitmanas. The revered Hindu literature, he commented, was “all nonsense.” He demanded that the government either ban the entire book or outlaw its offensive sections. He claimed that the scripture considered ‘Shudras’ to be of low caste and added that Tulsidas composed it for his own pleasure.
Afterwards, members of the Akhil Bharatiya OBC (Other Backward Classes) Mahasabha in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, burned copies of the Ramcharitmanas and declared their support for Swami Prasad Maurya. Following the incident, a First Information Report (FIR) was booked on a complaint filed by BJP leader Satnam Singh Lavi against Devendra Pratap Yadav, Yashpal Singh Lodhi, Satyendra Kushwaha, Mahendra Pratap Yadav, Sujit Yadav, Naresh Singh, S S Yadav, Santosh Verma and Saleem along with the SP lawmaker.
Another party leader Lalji Patel extended his support to the MLC and announced, “Ramcharitmanas is not a religious book. It is a book that creates a divide in society and insults backward caste people and Dalits. It should be burnt.” Additionally, he made an appeal to members of the backward class and encouraged them to burn copies of the Ramcharitmanas during the festival of Holi.
“This book is like any other novel and it is being wrongly used to propagate the Hindu religion. Tulsidas has just stated his opinion. He had written the book for his own pleasure. It is not a religious book. The copies of the said book should be burnt on the day of Holika. Only then will the backward class people and Dalits get their rights,” he added.
