New Delhi: The best example of caste discrimination in Sanatana practices, DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin said Wednesday, was President Droupadi Murmu’s exclusion from the new Parliament building inauguration in May.
Reporters asked the DMK leader to cite an example for Sanatana practices in the Hindu religion – mainly caste discrimination – which he so opposed.
The Tamil Nadu minister replied: “The Honourable President Droupadi Murmu was not invited for the opening of the Parliament. That is the best current example.”
Murmu, who took oath last July, is the country’s first tribal President, and only the second woman in the post.
Udhayanidhi, the son of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, reiterated Wednesday that he would not apologise for the remarks where he said that Sanatana practices were against equality and social justice.
As he addressed the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers and Artists Association in Chennai last week – a conference titled “End of Sanatana” – Stalin equated Sanatana with the coronavirus, malaria and dengue and said it should not just be opposed, but eliminated.
He clarified Monday that he had not singled out Hinduism — which is broadly called the Sanatana Dharma — but said he abhorred caste discrimination and inequalities in all religions.
Stalin’s reference to the President’s absence from the new Parliament’s inauguration ceremony is likely to add fuel to the already-raging controversy over his Saturday remarks.
The 28 May opening of the new complex was marred by controversy as Opposition parties slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to do the honours – and act, they said, neglected the role of President Droupadi Murmu.
Led by the Congress, the Opposition attacked the ruling BJP for insulting the country’s top constitutional post by not asking President Murmu or Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar to inaugurate it.
As 19 parties boycotted the inauguration, the BJP defended its move by saying the President was the Head of State, whereas the Prime Minister was the Head of Government.
The ruling party said the Prime Minister led Parliament on behalf of the government, while Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri posted on X: “The President is not a Member of either House, whereas PM is.”
Also read: ‘Never called for genocide’ — Udhayanidhi Stalin stands by ‘Sanatana’ remarks amid uproar