Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday (December 28) apologised for posting an incorrect translation of a verse from Bhagavad Gita on his social media handle. The deleted post had triggered a political row with the Opposition accusing him of promoting caste divides in the state.
“As a routine I upload one sloka of Bhagavad Gita every morning on my social media handles. Till date, I have posted 668 slokas. Recently one of my team members posted a sloka from Chapter 18 verse 44 with an incorrect translation,” Sarma posted on X.
He said that as soon as he noticed the mistake, he “promptly deleted the post”.
“The state of Assam reflects a perfect picture of a casteless society, thanks to the reform movement led by Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardeva,” he said.
“If the deleted post has offended anyone, I sincerely apologize,” the Chief Minister said.
Opposition reacts
CPIM reacted sharply to the deleted post and accused the BJP of promoting “Manuvadi ideology”.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi called the deleted post an “unfortunate cruelty that Assam’s Muslims have faced”.
“In a recently deleted post, Assam CM elaborated on his vision of society. “…farming, cow rearing, and commerce are natural duties of the Vaishya and serving the Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas is the natural duty of the Shudras.” Holding a constitutional position, your oath is to treat every citizen equally. It’s reflected in the unfortunate cruelty that Assam’s Muslims have faced in the past few years. Hindutva is antithetical to Liberty, Equality, Fraternity and Justice,” Owaisi posted on X.
