UP Minister Faces Flak Over Washing Hands In 'Argha' Of Shivling, Oppn Calls Him ‘Adharmi’ — WATCH

The viral video clip showed the UP Minister washing his hand in the 'Argha,' or the base, of the Shivling with the help of a priest.

Screengrab showing the UP Minister washing his hands on the Shivling

A video of Uttar Pradesh Minister Satish Sharma recently went viral on social media platforms showing him washing his hands just next to a Shivling in Lodheshwar Mahadev temple. People from across the party lines have expressed their anger at the actions of the BJP Minister. Congress spokesperson Surendra Rajput while talking to the news agency PTI said that this was an "unrighteous act" and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should suspend him. Sharma, however, countered all these allegations and said that he did nothing wrong otherwise the priest would have stopped him.

The video clip showed the Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies washing his hand in the 'Argha,' or the base, of the Shivling with the help of a priest.

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UP Congress President Ajay Rai lashed out at Sharma and said, "Washing hands in the 'argh' of Shivling is an unrighteous act. Only those who do not care about Sanatan Dharma can do this. The BJP minister has insulted Lord Shiva. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should sack him for this anti-religious act."

Samajwadi Party leader and former MLC Sunil Singh Sajan while talking to the media said that if the leader had belonged to some other caste, then the BJP would have him expelled by now. Sajan said, "When will Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expel this 'adharmi' minister? This is the real character of the BJP. First, they will ask for votes in the name of religion and then do such things."

Satish Sharma while talking to PTI said that the opposition was unnecessarily blowing up this matter. He told PTI, "I am a Sanatani Shiv bhakt. I know very well what is right and what is wrong. The opposition is unnecessarily blowing up the issue. I did what I felt was right. It was not my intention to hurt anyone. If I was wrong, the priest would not have washed my hands."

Meanwhile, Aditya Tiwari, the priest of Lodheshwar Mahadev Temple, also defended the Minister and said that he didn't do anything wrong. The priest while talking to PTI said, "Minister Sharma had sandalwood etc. on his hands after performing the puja. When he asked to wash his hands, they were washed next to Shivling. This was done because it was in the form of prasad. There is nothing wrong in this."

The said incident happened on August 27, when Sharma along with Public Works Minister Jitin Prasad visited Hetmapur village in Ramnagar to distribute relief material to flood-hit victims. During the day, both of them stopped to pray at the temple following which the video started doing rounds on social media platforms.