NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday slammed the BJP for allegedly dishonoring Hindu religious sentiments citing reports that ‘Shivling’ shaped fountains have come up in the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) area. It demanded the dismissal of L-G Vinay Kumar Saxena for ‘insulting’ the Hindu religion and insisted that the Central government must issue an apology to Hindus.
“L-G has been photographed showing a finger towards Shivling; he is wearing shoes and has put one hand in his pocket; this has exposed his hypocritical nature. At a time when the whole world is embracing the teachings of our Vedas, our own people are making fun of our Sanatan Dharma,” AAP leader Nitin Tyagi said.
“Recently, the BJP promoted the film Adipurush, in which our revered Gods were shown using foul. Does the BJP want to inculcate these values in the children? The BJP, which goes around talking about Hindu religion, does not even know how to respect the religion,” he said.
“We are getting calls from thousands of people not only from Delhi but from all over the country asking what is the Prime Minister and the BJP doing in Delhi. When such a big event like G20 is being hosted by the country, it has got the attention of the entire nation. Each citizen is looking forward to the successful hosting of the event. At such a time, Shiva devotees and people of the Hindu religion are angry with what BJP has done to the Hindus of this country,” an AAP leader said.
Earlier in the day, Saxena said the fountains are “a piece of art and not at all a Shivling”. NDMC Vice Chairman Satish Upadhyay denied the agency had anything to do with the fountains and claimed they were installed by the Delhi government’s PWD. “The AAP government owes an answer as to why Shivling-shaped fountains were installed by its agency, PWD. They are 100 per cent responsible for it,” he said.
As Delhi gears up to host the G20 summit from September 9 to 10, arterial stretches have been given a makeover. As part of the beautification, 18 fountains shaped like the ‘Shivling’ have been installed at the Hanuman Mandir junction in the Palam airport’s technical area, according to officials.
In a post on X, AAP Rajya Sabha MP and national spokesperson Sanjay Singh demanded that the BJP apologise to the country and action be taken against Saxena. LG House officials said the fountains were “procured and installed by the Delhi government’s PWD”.