BJP's Dilip Ghosh Defends Carrying Weapons At Ram Navami Procession, Sparks Controversy: 'What's Wrong...'

BJP leader Dilip Ghosh defends weapon-carrying during Hindu festival, claiming the community has a right to celebrate in its own way. He cites incidents of violence against temples.

BJP leader Dilip Ghosh.

Source : PTI

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dilip Ghosh stirred another controversy on Saturday by defacing the presence of weapons at a religious procession and said, What’s wrong if someone carries a weapon?' According to India Today, Ghosh asserted that Ram Navami will be celebrated with great fervour across West Bengal and that the Hindu community has every right to observe its festival in its own way.

“Ram Navami will be celebrated in a grand way across West Bengal. It is the duty of the police to ensure the peaceful conduct of celebrations. The Hindu community celebrates the festival as per their traditions; there should not be any problem with this,” he said.

Ghosh also claimed that in recent times, temples have been vandalised, idols stolen and pandals set on fire.

Another BJP MLA, Agnimitra Paul, said that the Hindu brothers and sisters, who are feeling unsafe, handed us weapons.

“If Muslims can carry weapons on Muharram, then why can't Hindus?... There should not be any discrimination among religions... Men and women are not safe in West Bengal…,” he said as quoted by news agency ANI.

On Sunday, people thronged temples and participated in colourful processions as Ram Navami was celebrated across the country amid tight security in communally sensitive areas in several states, including West Bengal, where BJP and TMC took out scores of rallies, giving a political hue to the festival.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, and greeted the people on the festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Ram. Prabhu Shri Ram is a uniting force for all of us, the prime minister said on X as he shared that he had a 'darshan' of the Ram Setu on his flight from Sri Lanka to India on Sunday.