Lucknow, 28 Nov (HS): Swami Prasad Maurya, National Secretary General of the Samajwadi Party, has blasted Uttar Pradesh jail authorities for reportedly urging detainees to recite Hanuman Chalisa. Government stances favoring religious programs for any particular group, according to Maurya, are fueling communalism.
Maurya slammed Uttar Pradesh Prison Minister Dharamveer Prajapati, saying, “While taking the oath of office, perhaps the minister is not adhering to the commitment he made. Our Constitution is non-denominational and secular. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Jains, and Parsis are all equal in the eyes of the Constitution. As a result, executing any religious-specific program in any government institution is constituted sectarian violence,” he continued. His comments came after Prajapati stated that the convicts were “willingly” chanting the Hanuman Chalisa.
“On Saturday and Tuesday, prisoners willingly recite the Hanuman Chalisa and Sunderkand Path. There is no reason to force prisoners to recite the Hanuman Chalisa or the Sunderkand Path,” the jail minister had stated. “Our only motive is that whoever believes in whatever religion can read the religious texts or chant mantras,” he went on to say.
Prajapati further stated that members of all religions are imprisoned. “If a prisoner of another religion requires a religious book or object, the department will provide it. There is unlimited freedom to read prayers in jail. Previously, I had given orders for inmates to chant mantras,” he explained.
“There can be no better guru for personality development than Lord Hanuman,” he added. ?Prisoners can learn how to live a better life in society from scriptures such as the Hanuman Chalisa. There are plans in the works to offer such religious materials to any prisoner who requests them from the jail library,” he claimed.
Leave a Reply