A day after an FIR was registered against Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge over the remarks made on the ‘Sanatana Dharma', the latter clarified on Thursday that his statement did not intend to hurt the sentiments of any religion.
"I said that any religion that discriminates between human beings is not a religion. I follow the Constitution, my religion is the Constitution. If they want to file an FIR against me or they want to arrest me, it is up to the individuals, I really don't care," news agency ANI quoted Kharge as saying.
While slamming the BJP for allegedly twisting his statement, the Karnataka minister said that they don't understand the language and can file the FIR. "All I have said is that the Constitution is my religion. Does BJP have a problem with it? These people do not understand Kannada, Hindi or English. Let them file as many FIRs as they want, they are free to do so," he said.
{{/usCountry}}While slamming the BJP for allegedly twisting his statement, the Karnataka minister said that they don't understand the language and can file the FIR. "All I have said is that the Constitution is my religion. Does BJP have a problem with it? These people do not understand Kannada, Hindi or English. Let them file as many FIRs as they want, they are free to do so," he said.
{{/usCountry}}In another development, Udhayanidhi Stalin also released a statement saying that he will face all cases legally while accusing PM Modi and BJP for using Sanatana ploy to divert attention from Manipur violence and other issues.
Releasing a four-page letter on X, Stalin said, “Let us resolve to work for the victory of the ideologies of Periyar, Anna, Kalaignar and Perasiriyar. Let Social Justice flourish forever.”
An FIR was launched against Udhayanidhi Stalin and Priyank Kharge under Section 153A (promoting enmity between different religious groups), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts to outrage religious feelings) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) after the complaints from advocates Harsh Gupta and Ram Singh Lodhi who highlighted media reports on Stalin's statement alleging that the politician's comments had hurt their feelings, as per PTI reports.
Addressing a seminar in Chennai last week, Udhayanidhi Satlin compared the Sanatana Dharma with diseases like dengue and malaria and had said it should not be merely opposed but "eradicated".
Priyank Kharge, son of Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge had said that any religion that does not promote equality is as good as a disease.
"Any religion that does not promote equality or does not ensure that you have the dignity of being human is not a religion, according to me. Any religion that does not give equal rights or treat you like humans is as good as a disease," Kharge had said.
(With inputs from ANI)