Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday distanced himself from the comments made by party MLA Indrajeet Saroj regarding the temples in India.
Akhilesh said that though he hasn't heard Indrajeet Saroj's comments, he emphasised the importance of focusing on progressive issues rather than dwelling on historical topics.
"I have not heard his statement, I have not even heard Ramji Lal Suman's statement, but I will say in the party that no question related to history should be raised... I want that if the things of history cannot show us a good path, if it cannot take us on a positive path, if it cannot give us a positive direction, then history should be allowed to remain history," Yadav said.
"History should not be discussed... Samajwadis have done so many progressive things, have said so many progressive things," the SP leader said.
The remark comes after SP leader Indrajeet Saroj reiterated his remarks questioning the role of deities during historical invasions by figures such as Muhammad Ghori. He further said that if India's temples had power, then invaders like Mohammad Bin Qasim, Mahmud Ghaznavi and Mohammad Ghori would not have come to the country.
"When Muslim invaders were looting and plundering here, what were our deities doing? They could have cursed them. This means there is some shortcoming in them. Our gods and goddesses were not that powerful," the SP leader said during an event in Uttar Pradesh.
The controversial remark of the SP leader comes shortly after another party leader Ramji Lal Suman sparked controversy with his statements on Rana Sanga.
Suman had called him a 'traitor' for allegedly inviting Babur, the first Mughal ruler, to India to defeat Ibrahim Lodi.