AAP Criticizes NDA Government For Including Manjhi In Cabinet

Jitan Ram Manjhi and Sanjay Singh

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today pointed out the NDA government for inducting Jitan Ram Manjhi into the Union Cabinet, despite Manjhi’s derogatory comment about Lord Ram. Sanjay Singh of AAP questioned whether the BJP agrees with his view that the Hindu deity is fictional and imaginary.

Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) founder, Jitan Ram Manjhi, is the Dalit face from Bihar. He has won the Lok Sabha 2024 elections from Gaya constituency.

Modi 3.0 government has now appointed him as a Cabinet minister. He has been awarded Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises.

The AAP hit out at the BJP for appointing Jitan Ram Manjhi as a cabinet minister, despite his alleged controversial statement that Ravan is better than Lord Ram. Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh questioned whether the BJP now considers Lord Ram and the Ramayan imaginary. The AAP leader further said that the BJP has “compromised” its religious beliefs for political power. He urged the BJP to clarify its stance on Manjhi’s remark.

Sanjay Singh, while addressing the media said that the BJP and the NDA government must explain why they appointed a person who questioned the existence of Lord Ram.

“He is the same person who said that Ravan is greater than Lord Ram, he doesn’t believe in the Hindu scripture Ramcharitmanas,” said the AAP MP.

“Today I want to ask the BJP, the RSS and the Modi government whether Lord Ram is a fictional character, whether they believe Ravan was greater than Lord Ram.” He further stated and demanded that PM Modi and the BJP should clarify their stance.

In 2022, Jitan Ram Manjhi, at a public gathering, said that Lord Ram was a “mythical character”, and Ravan was more knowledgeable then Lord Ram in rituals than the Hindu deity.

This statement drew significant backlash from Hindutva groups and others, who expressed their anger at the HAM chief.

The AAP MP also stated to draw conclusions over the failure BJP in Uttar Pradesh and said that the ruling party paid the price for its “anti-OBC, anti-Dalit” mindset.

Richa Kaushik