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Udhayanidhi Stalin pulled up by Supreme Court over Sanatana remark: 'You are not a layman'
The top court has adjourned the plea for hearing on March 15.
In a major setback of Tamil Nadu minister and DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin, the Supreme Court on Monday rebuked the leader over his controversial “eradicate Sanatana Dharma” remark saying that he should have been careful with his statements as being a minister, he should be aware of the consequences of such statements.
Read here: Udhayanidhi Stalin summoned by Bengaluru court for Sanatan dharma comment
A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, who was hearing the plea, said, “You abuse your right under Article 19(1)(a) (of the Constitution). You abuse your right under Article 25. Now you are exercising your right under Article 32 (to file plea in the Supreme Court)? Do you not know the consequences of what you said? You are not a layman. You are a minister. You should know the consequences.”
The top court has adjourned the plea for hearing on March 15.
Read here: ‘Those who challenge Sanatan Dharma': Smriti Irani's dig at Udhayanidhi
Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK chief MK Stalin, had sparked a massive controversy in September 2023 after he compared Sanatana Dharma with dengue, malaria and said Sanatana Dharma should be eradicated.
While participating in an event, UdhayanidhI said, “There are some things that we have to eradicate and we can’t merely oppose. Mosquitoes, dengue, corona and malaria are things that we cannot oppose, we have to eradicate them. Sanatanam is also like this. Eradication and not opposing Sanatanam has to be our first task.”
Read here: Ayodhya seer offers ₹10 crore reward for killing Udhayanidhi Stalin, he responds
However, Udhayanidhi reiterated that he would say the same thing about Sanatana Dharma while his stance on Hindu religion is not that of hatred. Udhayanidhi clarified that his comment was against caste-based society which is Sanatana, and not against the Hindu religion.
Several leaders and people strongly criticised the DMK leader for making such a statement and even asked for an apology from the INDIA bloc as DMK part is a member of the INDIA alliance. The remarks also led to several criminal complaints being filed against him.
(With inputs from agencies)
