SP leader Maurya writes to PM Modi, demands amendment, ban on Ramcharitmanas' parts disrespecting Dalits

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) : Amid a heavy backlash faced by Samajwadi Party MLC Swami Prasad Maurya over his controversial remarks on Ramcharitmanas, the former Cabinet Minister of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding an amendment and ban on parts of the epic which he claimed are disrespectful to women and Dalits. "For revising/banning some of the objectionable parts of some couplets of Ramcharitmanas in which all women, tribals, Dalits and backward people have to be insulted on a daily basis at the social, and religious level and to give respect to the victim class, a letter has been sent to President and Prime Minister," Maurya tweeted in Hindi. Last month, Maurya sparked a major controversy after he demanded the deletion of "insulting comments and sarcasm" targeted at particular castes and sects in Ramcharitmanas, a poem based on the epic Ramayana.Maurya further claimed that in the Ramcharitmanas, which was composed by Tulsidas, there are words hurting the sentiments of the Dalit community. On January 30, Maurya had also taken a jibe at Mahant Raju Das by stating that he could have just cursed him instead of spending Rs 21 lakh to get him killed. In his tweet, SP MLC Maurya stated, "A baba (seer) who claims to do the impossible is very popular nowadays. What kind of a baba are you? Despite having the most powerful support, you are offering a bounty to get me killed. You could have simply cursed. You could have also saved Rs 21 lakh and people could see your real face." Earlier too, the SP leader said he will continue to oppose the "conspiracy to humiliate tribals, Dalits, backwards and women in the name of religion. Just as an elephant does not change its gait due to barking of dogs, in the same way, I will not change my point until they are duly respected," he said in a tweet.