Protesters called for the arrest of Bharatha Nasthika Sangham leader Renjerla Rajesh during a sit-in on the road near the Gnana Saraswati temple.
UPDATE – 10:58AM, TUESDAY – 1/3/23
Protesters called for the arrest of Bharatha Nasthika Sangham leader Renjerla Rajesh during a sit-in on the road near the Gnana Saraswati temple.
Hyderabad: On Tuesday, the town of Basar in Telangana’s Nirmal district was observed to be closed due to derogatory remarks made by atheist Renjarla Rajesh against the Hindu goddess Maa Saraswati.
Protesters called for the arrest of Bharatha Nasthika Sangham leader Renjerla Rajesh during a sit-in on the road near the Gnana Saraswati temple. Priests and temple workers also joined the protest near the temple’s main entrance.
Villagers and businessmen also carried out rasta roko (road blockade) on the Nizamabad-Bhainsa highway in order to condemn Rajesh’s remarks. Protests lead to traffic jams. Protesters held up slogans calling for Rajesh’s arrest.
Shops, businesses and educational institutions were closed due to bandh calls issued by some Hindu groups. They asked the police to arrest Rajesh under the Preventive Detention (PD) Act.
The town of Basar on the banks of the Godavari River is famous for the Saraswati Temple. It is believed to be the destination of Akshara Abhyasam rituals. Special prayers are performed to Goddess Saraswati before the child receives formal education. After the ceremony, devotees ask the priest to have their children write their first letters on the slate.
Vikarabad district police last week arrested Atheist Association president Bairi Naresh and another staff member, Dolu Hanumanthu, for allegedly making derogatory remarks about Hindu gods, mainly Ayyappa Swamy.
Naresh made the comments in Kodangal on December 19, three days after a video of his speech went viral on social media.
This sparked statewide protests by Ayyappa devotees, who demanded Naresh’s immediate arrest and stern action against him. They have also lodged complaints against him with the police in various places.
Later, Karimnagar police arrested another man, Bairi Agni Tej, for making derogatory posts about Ayyappa Swamy on social media.
He made a derogatory post on Facebook on Dec. 30, according to police. He was arrested for hurting the religious feelings of Ayappa followers and creating discord.
The BJP and other Hindutva groups have been targeting the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) for allowing atheists to spread anti-Hindu sentiment among the people by encouraging atheists to hold meetings in villages under the guise of the Ambedkar organization.
However, the BRS dismissed the allegations and made it clear that the government will take tough action against anyone who harms religious sentiment at any level of society.
Bharatha Nasthika Sangham leaders Bairi Naresh and Renjarla Rajesh have been facing wrath from these groups for making derogatory comments about Hindu gods.
