E-Paper
Govt plane, cop touching feet: Video of Dhirendra Shastri's arrival in Raipur sparks row
The video purportedly shows Shastri alighting from a government plane after his arrival, following which an on-duty police officer is seen touching his feet.
A video of Bageshwar Dham head and spiritual preacher Dhirendra Shastri arriving in Chattisgarh's Raipur has sparked a row on social media.
The video purportedly shows Shastri alighting from a government aircraft after his arrival in Raipur, following which an on-duty police officer is seen saluting the preacher and then removing his cap and shoes before touching his feet, PTI reported.
Shastri, who arrived in Raipur Thursday (December 25), was accompanied by Chattisgarh minister and BJP leader Guru Khushwant Saheb, the news agency reported. Shastri was scheduled to attend a religious discourse in Bhilai town in Durg district.
After the video emerged and went viral on social media, it spurred a controversy, with questions being raised regarding the conduct of the uniformed officer and the use of a government plane for a religious preacher's travel purposes.
Congress criticises incident, BJP cites ‘personal faith’
The Congress has alleged that the preacher's arrival by a government plane was “misuse of public money”, PTI news agency reported. On the cop's gesture, meanwhile, the BJP defended it as an act of “personal faith”, accusing the Opposition party of being against Sanatan Dharma.
After the incident, Chhattisgarh Congress communication department head Sushil Anand Shukla on Friday said the sending of a government aircraft for Dhirendra Shastri's visit was a “wastage of public money” and “misuse of state exchequer”, PTI reported.
Shukla accused Shastri of acting “against the country's composite culture”, while claiming that he was neither a religious head nor a ‘peethadhishwar’ for a recognised shrine or ashram, according to the PTI report.
However, Chattisgarh BJP chief spokesperson Santosh Pandey said there was nothing to object over a police officer paying respects to a religious preacher.
"Don't (Muslim) railway employees and airport staff offer namaz at railway stations and airports? Why does it upset the Congress when a police officer bows to a guru out of personal faith?" PTI quoted Pandey as saying.
