Giriraj Singh dragged to court for calling Muslims descendants of Lord Rama

A complaint case was filed in a court here on Tuesday accusing senior BJP leader and Union minister Giriraj Singh of having "hurt Muslim sentiments" by calling them "descendants of Lord Rama" in one of his recent speeches.

The complaint was lodged by a social activist before the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (West), Muzaffarpur, Saba Alam, who posted the matter for hearing on November 3.

The complainant, Tamanna Hashmi, felt aggrieved by a newspaper report wherein Singh was quoted as having made the statement.

Invoking Indian Penal Code Sections 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot, 293 (intent to insult the religion of any class) and 504 (insult with intent to cause breach of peace), Hashmi alleged that the Union minister's utterances have "hurt the religious statements of Muslims".

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader who represents Nawada Lok Sabha seat in the state had reportedly made the statement in Baghpat district of western Uttar Pradesh earlier this week.

In his speech, Singh had allegedly said that the minority community should come forward and extend its support towards construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya.