'Not To Worship Hindu Gods': Chhattisgarh Headmaster Booked For Pledge

A government primary school headmaster in Chhattisgarh“s Bilaspur district was arrested on Sunday on the grounds of allegedly hurting religious sentiments.

The incident happened on January 22, during the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of the Ram temple held at Ayodhya, headmaster Ratalal Sarovar got together a group of people, including children in Mohtarai village in Ratanpur. He then allegedly supervised a pledge not to worship Hindu gods, including the Shiv, the Ram and the Krishna and observe Buddhism, a Police officer said.

“I will not have faith in Brahma, Vishnu as gods and will not worship them either, and I will not have belief in any God and deities of Hindu religion. One should adopt Buddhism, and shun Ram-Krishna,” Times of India quotes as he is saying.

The event came to notice, when a video of the Sarovar”s  speech was uploaded on social media and went viral. Rupesh Shukla, an office-bearer of a right wing organisation filed a complaint stating that his act has hurt the sentiments of the followers of Sanatan Dharma, the official reported.

Following the complaint, Ratalal Sarovar was arrested on Sunday.

Police officer said that he was booked under sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, etc. and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class, of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The investigation is progressing, the Police said.

(With inputs from PTI)