Moradabad/Ballia (UP), Aug 10 (PTI) The Samajwadi Party’s former MP S T Hasan courted controversy on Sunday after he claimed that demolishing places of worship “out of arrogance” would anger the “creator” and lead to an increase in natural disasters.
Reacting to the natural calamity that hit Uttarkashi in Uttarakhand last week, he also said that ecological imbalance caused by massive destruction of the environment has led to increased instances of such disasters.
Talking to PTI Videos, Hasan said that in India, people of all faiths — Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians — believe that the events in their lives are determined by the almighty.
“We have angered Him (God) by running bulldozers over temples, mosques and dargahs, places where His name is taken and where He is worshipped. If we destroy such places in arrogance, his mercy will not be with us, and disasters will only increase,” he said.
The former MP stressed that all communities turn to their respective places of worship in times of distress. “Hindus go to temples and pray to God to save them; Muslims go to mosques and beg Allah for mercy. Even the most difficult of problems get resolved and prayers are accepted,” he said.
Hasan added that tampering with such sacred spaces disturbs the spiritual balance. “If we bulldoze the places where the creator’s name is taken, then it is obvious that his blessings will not be with us,” he remarked.
The former Moradabad MP went on to say, “We have destroyed the ecosystem by cutting trees indiscriminately. This ecological imbalance has resulted in an increase in natural disasters.” Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh’s Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Transport Daya Shankar Singh on Sunday advised Hasan to show sympathy towards the families affected by the disaster in Uttarakhand and provide help.
“It is a natural disaster; there should be sympathy towards the affected families, on how to help them and share their grief. This is not the time for such political statements,” Singh told PTI in Ballia.
About Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav slamming the Election Commission, Singh said that they like the EC when they win, and accuse it of graft when they lose.
He countered the statement of the SP chief, terming the BJP a “university of corruption”, and said the public has rejected such leaders. PTI COR ABN NAV NSD NSD
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