In a sharp reaction to Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya’s claim that the Badrinath temple had been built after destroying a Buddhist shrine, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday accused the Opposition alliance of holding the ideology of Islamic extremist groups.
As a member of the “Mahagathbandhan” — a reference to the Opposition’s INDIA coalition — Mr. Maurya’s statement showed the “anti-national and anti-religion thinking of the Congress and its allies, said Mr. Dhami. “This view also reveals the dominance of the ideology of SIMI and PFI within these parties,” he added, referring to the Students’ Islamic Movement of India and the Popular Front of India, both of which are radical Muslim groups banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 2019.
Noting that the Badrinath temple, one of the four shrines of Char Dham, was the “centre of faith of crores of devotees”, Mr. Dhami said that Mr. Maurya’s remarks were “unfortunate”. He also asked SP chief Akhilesh Yadav to take action against such SP leaders who keep on hurting the sentiments of the Hindu community.
