Comment On Shankaracharya: BJP Demands Apology, Narasingha Mishra Refuses

Bhubaneswar: Launching a scathing attack on senior Congress leader Narasingha Mishra for his comment on Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today termed Mishra's remark as 'derogatory' and demanded his apology.

Mishra allegedly made some derogatory remarks against Swami Nischalananda Saraswati while discussing the Endowment Amendment Bill brought by the Odisha government in the Assembly on Saturday.

Addressing a presser here on Monday, BJP spokesperson Golak Mohapatra said, "It is a known fact that Swami Nischalananda Saraswati is the Chief of Puri Govardhan Mutt. Questioning Shankaracharya's surname and his educational background is unfortunate and deplorable."

"Questioning Shankaracharya's authority has hurt the sentiments of crores of Lord Jagannath devotees and undermined the Jagannath culture. Mishra and also the Congress should apologize," added Mohapatra.

Responding to the allegations of Mohapatra, Mishra said, "Whatever I said in the House is right and I stand for it. There is no question of apology."

Mishra further said, "My BJP friends are very good at politicising religious issues. This is just a new political stunt of BJP."