JD(U), RJD Slam Baba Bageshwar for Hindu Rashtra Remark in Bihar

Patna: The ruling JD(U)-RJD combine has severely criticised self-styled godman Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, aka Bageshwar Dham, for saying that the “fire of Hindu Rashtra will be ignited from Bihar”.

During the five-day-long preaching session in Naubatpur, near Patna, Shastri repeatedly claimed that “India is on the way to becoming a Hindu Rashtra” and urged thousands of attendees to support his call for a Hindu Rashtra.

On the fourth day, Shastri said, “The population of Bihar is 13 crore. Hindu Rashtra will start from Bihar only. Even if only five crore people hang the flag of their religion at their homes and start applying tilak on their foreheads, India will move towards becoming a Hindu nation,”

Chief minister (CM) Nitish Kumar questioned Shastri’s remark. “Were all those saying this born during the freedom struggle? ... What is the need of saying this? Follow any religion you want. But proposals for renaming are surprising. Is that even possible?” he told the media on Tuesday.

#WATCH | "...Were all those who are saying this, born during freedom struggle?... What is the need of saying this? Follow any religion you want. But proposals for renaming are surprising. Is that even possible?..," Bihar CM Nitish Kumar reacts to Bageshwar Dham's Dhirendra… pic.twitter.com/UtCia2SbqL

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2023

RJD president and former CM Lalu Prasad, on his way to Delhi, when asked why Shastri wasn’t stopped from holding the discourse, asked, “Who is he? Is he really a baba?

#WATCH | "Who is Baba Bageshwar? Is he a Baba?," says former Bihar CM and RJD national president Lalu Prasad Yadav when asked why was Bageshwar Dham's Dhirendra Shastri not stopped from holding an event in Patna. pic.twitter.com/7dTnSMtSQo

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2023

Kumar, his deputy Tejashwi Yadav and Lalu and his wife and former CM Rabri Devi refused to attend the discourse despite an invitation and Shastri’s eagerness to meet them, according to local Hindi dailies.

Lalu’s elder son and minister Tej Pratap Yadav said that Shastri “abused” Biharis and called them “mad”. Shastri had triggered a controversy when he equated the massive number of attendees to “madmen”.

“There’s Krishna Raj and Mahagathbandhan Raj in Bihar ...Politics is being done to divide the country,” Tej Pratap told reporters on Tuesday.
 

#WATCH | Bihar Minister Tej Pratap Yadav speaks on Bageshwar Dham's Dhirendra Shastri's event in Patna; says, "...This Baba is abusing Biharis and calling them 'pagal'. There's 'Krishna Raj' & 'Mahagathbandhan Raj' in Bihar...This politics is being done to divide the country..." pic.twitter.com/58Guhj7TsG

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2023

In fact, senior RJD leaders and ministers, including Tej Pratap and education minister Chandra Shekhar, had targeted Shastri before he landed in Patna and recalled that BJP leader LK Advani was arrested in Bihar in the early 90s to maintain communal harmony.

“Bageshwar Baba is sending his men daily to apologise. He is a coward and traitor; he is making Hindus and Muslims fight,” Tej Pratap told the media on May 9.
 

#WATCH | Bihar: "Bageshwar Baba is sending his men daily to apologise. He is a coward and traitor, he is making Hindus & Muslims fight....": Bihar Minister and RJD leader Tej Pratap Yadav on Bageshwar Dham chief Dhirendra Shastri pic.twitter.com/nGxobSy68t

— ANI (@ANI) May 9, 2023

On May 3, Chandra Shekhar had said that Shastri would be arrested like Advani if he caused communal tension.

RJD state president Jagdanand Singh had said that “such godmen should be in jail. “It is unfortunate that Bageshwar Dham is outside of jail.”

Senior RJD leaders and Bihar ministers Surendra Prasad Yadav and Surendar Ram said that Shastri “only exploits people, particularly women, in the name of ghosts and superstitions”. Senior JD(U) leader and Bihar minister Ashok Choudhary likened Shastri to the jailed Asharam Bapu.

On the other hand, the opposition BJP supported Shastri. Union ministers Giriraj Singh and Ashwini Kumar Choubey, championing a Hindu Rashtra for years, attacked the ruling coalition for not attending the event.

Both Singh and Choubey, along with former Union ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad, Ram Kirpal Yadav, Bhojouri actor-turned-BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, Assembly Opposition leader Vijay Sinha, Bihar BJP president Samrat Chaudhary and dozens of party MPs and MLAs welcomed Shastri and attended his event.