Conservative Hindu leaders in the pilgrim town of Udipi in Karnataka are seeking to prevent a monk from heading one of the country's most popular temples saying he had become "impure" because he had travelled overseas, according to a news report by Reuters.
The news report adds that even Gandhi was excommunicated when he went to England to study law....Read full news item here...
7.12.07
Now another Indian politician questions historicity of Ram
After Tamil Nadu chief minister, another Indian chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has questioned the historical existence of Ram, the Hindu God.http://news.in.msn.com/national/article.aspx?cp-documentid=1134600
Buddha questions existence of Lord Ram
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has stoked another controversy by questioning the existence of Lord Ram.
"Ram was born in the imagination of poets and Ram Sethu is a natural formation under the sea," Bhatacharjee told a meeting to mark the 15th anniversary of the demolition of Babri Masjid on Thursday.
He said the Sethusamudram project was being opposed by the Sangh Parivar on religious ground, but it was vital for economic development of the region.
Reacting to Bhattacharjee's remarks, state BJP general secretary Rahul Sinha on Friday said the remarks were an attempt to appease the Muslim vote bank after the fiasco in Nandigram.
"Ram is a matter of faith and Communists had always hated godmen. Even they spread calumnies against Tagore and Swami Vivekananda," he said.
Bhattacharjee's remarks came months after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's similar remarks on the existence of Lord Ram which had generated a country-wide controversy.
Buddha questions existence of Lord Ram
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has stoked another controversy by questioning the existence of Lord Ram.
"Ram was born in the imagination of poets and Ram Sethu is a natural formation under the sea," Bhatacharjee told a meeting to mark the 15th anniversary of the demolition of Babri Masjid on Thursday.
He said the Sethusamudram project was being opposed by the Sangh Parivar on religious ground, but it was vital for economic development of the region.
Reacting to Bhattacharjee's remarks, state BJP general secretary Rahul Sinha on Friday said the remarks were an attempt to appease the Muslim vote bank after the fiasco in Nandigram.
"Ram is a matter of faith and Communists had always hated godmen. Even they spread calumnies against Tagore and Swami Vivekananda," he said.
Bhattacharjee's remarks came months after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's similar remarks on the existence of Lord Ram which had generated a country-wide controversy.
19.9.07
Where is proof Ram built bridge, asks Karunanidhi
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/217566.html
Chennai, September 16: Though the Centre has decided to withdraw its controversial affidavits on the existence of Ram, expressing regret for hurting religious sentiments, the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu has come down hard on “communal forces” for using the “myth” of Ram Sethu to stall the Sethusamudram project.
Karunanidhi’s remarks more offensive than affidavit: BJPSethu: ASI DG wants more time to file reply on affidavitSethusamudram: Baalu says will seek SC go-aheadIn turf war to get close to Sonia, Ram is new tool: after Ramesh, Dhawan attacks SoniNow, BJP wants legal action on affidavit fiasco
Warning the Centre against succumbing to communal forces, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, at a function in Erode on Saturday night, said: “Who is this Raman (as Lord Ram is referred to in Tamil)? In which engineering college did he study and become a civil engineer? When did he build this so-called bridge? Is there any evidence for this?”
“The withdrawal of the affidavits does not mean that the project is being withdrawn,” Karunanidhi told reporters at Yercaud near Salem. “If it amounts to the project itself being shelved, then the DMK, which adheres to scientific, rational and progressive ideals, will not accept it.”
On whether there was any difference of opinion between the DMK and Centre on the issue, he retorted: “The conflict is between us and communal elements. It is between us and dominant forces that are using superstitions of the people to stall the project and achieve their ends. It is not a conflict between us and the Union Government. Our stand is that the Centre should not succumb to these communal elements.”
At Erode, Karunanidhi said: “The latest attempt to stall the Sethusamudram project is by a group of jackals, conspirators and dangerous elements. Their objective is to subvert a major project that would usher in development in the southern parts of our state.”
In a resolution which he read out at the function, Karunanidhi warned the Government against giving up the project in the name of Ram Sethu. The Ramayana, he said, was only “a piece of fiction that allegorically represented the conflict between Aryans and Dravidians”.
The Tamil Nadu CM blamed “communal elements” and even Sri Lanka for stalling the project, “a long-cherished dream of Tamils”. “The opposition to the Sethusamudram project was an attempt to destroy the Dravidian movement,” he said. The Centre, he advised, should not be intimidated by threats from religious elements and delay a project that the Prime Minister and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had agreed to implement.
Chennai, September 16: Though the Centre has decided to withdraw its controversial affidavits on the existence of Ram, expressing regret for hurting religious sentiments, the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu has come down hard on “communal forces” for using the “myth” of Ram Sethu to stall the Sethusamudram project.
Karunanidhi’s remarks more offensive than affidavit: BJPSethu: ASI DG wants more time to file reply on affidavitSethusamudram: Baalu says will seek SC go-aheadIn turf war to get close to Sonia, Ram is new tool: after Ramesh, Dhawan attacks SoniNow, BJP wants legal action on affidavit fiasco
Warning the Centre against succumbing to communal forces, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, at a function in Erode on Saturday night, said: “Who is this Raman (as Lord Ram is referred to in Tamil)? In which engineering college did he study and become a civil engineer? When did he build this so-called bridge? Is there any evidence for this?”
“The withdrawal of the affidavits does not mean that the project is being withdrawn,” Karunanidhi told reporters at Yercaud near Salem. “If it amounts to the project itself being shelved, then the DMK, which adheres to scientific, rational and progressive ideals, will not accept it.”
On whether there was any difference of opinion between the DMK and Centre on the issue, he retorted: “The conflict is between us and communal elements. It is between us and dominant forces that are using superstitions of the people to stall the project and achieve their ends. It is not a conflict between us and the Union Government. Our stand is that the Centre should not succumb to these communal elements.”
At Erode, Karunanidhi said: “The latest attempt to stall the Sethusamudram project is by a group of jackals, conspirators and dangerous elements. Their objective is to subvert a major project that would usher in development in the southern parts of our state.”
In a resolution which he read out at the function, Karunanidhi warned the Government against giving up the project in the name of Ram Sethu. The Ramayana, he said, was only “a piece of fiction that allegorically represented the conflict between Aryans and Dravidians”.
The Tamil Nadu CM blamed “communal elements” and even Sri Lanka for stalling the project, “a long-cherished dream of Tamils”. “The opposition to the Sethusamudram project was an attempt to destroy the Dravidian movement,” he said. The Centre, he advised, should not be intimidated by threats from religious elements and delay a project that the Prime Minister and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had agreed to implement.
Lord Ram an imaginary character: Karunanidhi
http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14528452&vsv=SHGTslot1
Erode: Charging communal forces with attempts to stop the work on the Sethusamudram project by invoking the name of Lord Ram, DMK patriarch and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has said Ram was an imaginary character and Ram Sethu (Adam's Bridge) was man-made.
'Some say there was a person over 17 lakh years ago. His name was Ram. Do not touch the bridge (Ram Sethu) constructed by him. Who is this Ram? From which engineering college he graduated? Is there any proof for this?' Karunanidhi, a known atheist, asked at a public meeting.
Addressing the meeting here late on Sunday night on the occasion of DMK founder C N Annadurai's 99th birth anniversary he said people of Tamil Nadu had lot of faith in religious matters and some thought that their emotions could be easily whipped up by quoting the name of Ram.
If the Sethusamudram project was completed, Sri Lanka might face economic difficulties and Tamil Nadu would prosper, he said adding some Sri Lankans might have whispered to some here that Tamil Nadu should never become prosperous.
'Only to prevent the good scheme, they got hold of the name of a person who was supposed to have lived 17 lakh years ago', he said.
He claimed that the opposition to the project was part of a large conspiracy by 'some jackals, who wanted to destroy the Dravidian movement'.
Erode: Charging communal forces with attempts to stop the work on the Sethusamudram project by invoking the name of Lord Ram, DMK patriarch and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has said Ram was an imaginary character and Ram Sethu (Adam's Bridge) was man-made.
'Some say there was a person over 17 lakh years ago. His name was Ram. Do not touch the bridge (Ram Sethu) constructed by him. Who is this Ram? From which engineering college he graduated? Is there any proof for this?' Karunanidhi, a known atheist, asked at a public meeting.
Addressing the meeting here late on Sunday night on the occasion of DMK founder C N Annadurai's 99th birth anniversary he said people of Tamil Nadu had lot of faith in religious matters and some thought that their emotions could be easily whipped up by quoting the name of Ram.
If the Sethusamudram project was completed, Sri Lanka might face economic difficulties and Tamil Nadu would prosper, he said adding some Sri Lankans might have whispered to some here that Tamil Nadu should never become prosperous.
'Only to prevent the good scheme, they got hold of the name of a person who was supposed to have lived 17 lakh years ago', he said.
He claimed that the opposition to the project was part of a large conspiracy by 'some jackals, who wanted to destroy the Dravidian movement'.
1.8.07
Woman tortured for not adopting husband's religion
source: http://www.indiaenews.com/religion/20070801/63477.htm
A Muslim woman in Orissa has alleged that she is being tortured for refusing to adopt her Hindu husband's religion.
Mana Khatun, 19, of Haladia village in Kendrapada district, about 100 km from state capital Bhubaneswar, married Kalindi Sethi, 25, a Hindu youth of the same village last month at a local temple.
'Soon after the marriage, my husband and in laws pressurised me to adopt Hinduism. When I refused to convert, they physically tortured me and drove me out of the house,' Mana said Tuesday.
The woman also alleged that she sat in front of her husband's house for hours asking to be let in but in vain.
'At the time of the marriage, the girl was aware of my son's religion. She has no right to remain a Muslim after marrying him,' said Kulamani Sethi, 53, Kalindi's father.
'On the occasion of the holy Ratha Yatra (chariot festival) last week, members of our community decided to change her name from Mana Khatun to Manasi Sethi after performing a purification ritual as per Hindu religious practice. But she did not agree to change her religion or her name,' he said.
Mana says that even after marriage she continued to offer the Namaz and perform other Muslim rites but her husband and father-in-law strongly opposed this and asked her to worship Hindu deities.
'My husband and father-in-law have been pressurising me to change my religion. Last week, they severely assaulted me after I refused to embrace Hinduism,' she said.
'I am ready to die. But I will not change my religion,' Mana added.
She is now in a very difficult situation as her father has also refused to let her stay in his house because she married a Hindu.
'On Monday, both Mana Khatun's father and her husband came to the police station to sort out the dispute. We are trying to resolve the matter peacefully,' said police officer S. Das.
27.7.07
Guruvayur temple allows entry of women wearing churidars
source: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200707261756.htm
Guruvayur, July. 26 (PTI): In a radical break from the centuries-old dress code of the Sree Krishna temple here, the shrine's management today decided to allow women wearing churidars to enter it.
Guruvayur Devaswom Managing Committee Chairman Thottathil Raveendran told reporters the change was made as part of the ongoing process of reforming the temple rules in the wake of the recent controversy sparked by the "purification ceremony" peformed in the shrine after a visit by Union Minister Vayalar Ravi's son.
The decision marks a major change in the custom which insisted that only women clad in saris or Kerala's traditional 'mundu' and 'veshti' could enter the shrine.
Men are also not allowed to enter the temple, known for its rigid customs and practices, wearing pants and shirts.
Some women's groups have demanded changes in the outdated dress code followed by the temple, which is visited by thousands from across the country every day.
25.7.07
Case against dera saint
Molestation Charge
Case against dera chief Shankaranand
Jupinderjit Singh
Tribune News Service
source http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070726/punjab1.htm#20
Talwandi Khurd, July 25
The Mullanpur police has booked Swami Shankaranand, head of a dera by the same name in this village, for allegedly molesting a woman, besides beating her up along with her brother in the dera complex this morning.
The police registered the case against him and some of his followers late in the evening after a day-long tense drama. About 500 persons, including a large number of women, belonging to Mor Karima village laid siege to the Shankaranand dera for nearly seven hours today in protest against the incident.
The accused was booked under sections 323, 341, 354, 427 and 506 of the IPC on a complaint of the woman.
The dera head was granted bail in the evening.
According to Gurmail Singh, sarpanch of Mor Karima village, the woman and her brother had gone to pay obeisance at the dera. Some dera sewaks objected to the manner in which they parked their car. An argument took place at which the sewaks and the dera head allegedly beat them up.
The two were left with swollen eyes and torn clothes. They later called up their relatives in Mor Karima village. The entire village came to their help and staged a dharna.
The situation remained volatile and tense throughout the day. The police was present in large numbers along with the anti-riot squad and a CRPF battalion to control the mob.
The victims claimed their brother had died under mysterious circumstances in the dera three years ago. They had been demanding action against some sewaks.
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