Two Demands In Rajya Sabha: Law To Stop Disrespect Of Hindu Gods, 'Ahimsa' In Preamble

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Ashok Bajpai today (Tuesday) called for a law to prevent disrespect to Hindu deities by the way of writing, painting or any other visual medium. He was speaking during Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha. He further stated that tolerance of Hindus is being perceived as a weakness and urged the government to come up with a law that would stop disrespect to Hindu gods.

He also claimed that because Hindus are tolerant, people show disrespect towards their gods by publishing inappropriate literature on Hindu deities. He then noted that people are not hesitant to hurt Hindu sentiment by drawing pictures about the faith. The BJP Lawmaker further took examples from countries that have blasphemy laws to support his claims and said that more than 100 countries have such laws.

Interestingly, during the discussion in Zero Hour, another MP from Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Sasmit Patra demanded the inclusion of the term “Ahimsa” (non-violence) in the preamble of the constitution. He also cited the Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s proposal in 2018 that the idea of Ahimsa should be included in the preamble of the constitution.

The BJD MP further said that Ahimsa is the most powerful message India gifted to the world. Three years after the chief minister”s call for the inclusion of “Ahimsa” in the preamble, Mr Sasmit Patra had also made a similar demand in 2021 in the Rajya Sabha. The Odisha government had passed a unanimous resolution in the state assembly to include “Ahimsa” in the preamble March 2021, marking the commemoration of Mahatma Gandhi’s first visit to the state.