US City Declares Sept 3 As 'Sanatana Dharma' Day Amid Row Over Udhayanidhi's Remarks

Spiritual leaders including Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Bhagawati Saraswati were among the attendees at the event.

Amid the row over Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin comparing Sanatana Dharma to a disease and calling for its eradication, a city in the US state of Kentucky has officially declared September 3 as 'Sanatana Dharma Day'. According to news agency IANS, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg attended a re-consecration ceremony at the Hindu Temple of Kentucky where his deputy Barbara Sexton Smith read out the official proclamation on September 3.

Taking to microblogging site X, formerly Twitter, Greenberg on Wednesday wrote, "I was honored to attend the Mahakumbhabhishekam ceremony at the Hindu Temple. The rituals performed to renew and restore the temple hold great cultural importance. Our office has officially declared September 3rd as ‘Sanatana Dharma Day’."

Spiritual leaders and dignitaries including Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Bhagawati Saraswati along with Lieutenant governor Jacqueline Coleman, deputy chief of staff Keisha Dorsey were among the attendees at the event, reported IANS.

"The re-consecration — or Mahakumbh Abhishekam — of the Hindu Temple of Kentucky was made more powerful and significant by Louisville Mayor’s proclamation of 3 September 2023 as SanatanaDharma Day! A wonderful new chapter in the glorious saga of Indian culture!" wrote Swami Chidanand Saraswati on X.

Sanatana Dharma Controversy

Tamil Nadu minister and son of Chief Minister MK Stalin, Udhayanidhi Stalin during an event in the state on Saturday had compared Sanatana Dharma to a disease and said it "should be eradicated".

His comments sparked widespread backlash from opposition parties and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

An FIR was also registered against Udhayanidhi in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur for allegedly outraging religious feelings.

 He was booked under sections 295 A (deliberate and malicious acts to outrage religious feelings) and 153 A (promoting enmity between different religious groups) of the IPC at Civil Lines Police Station in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur, reported PTI.