Giriraj Singh extends New Year greetings in trademark style

Union minister Giriraj Singh, who is known for wearing his religious identity on his sleeves, on Wednesday extended new year greetings to the nation in his trademark style.

Taking to Twitter, the BJP leader, who is celebrating the New Year at his Lok Sabha constituency of Begusarai, sought to remind the people of the country that "we derive our identity from Sanatana" and that January 1 marked the beginning of "prashasanik" (administrative) new year.

The minister, who prefixed "Shandilya" to his name on Twitter to emphasize the importance of "Gotra" among Hindus, also claimed that "Jai Shri Ram" - a form of greeting popular in the Sangh Parivar - was the thread that bound "Bharatvarshis" (Indians) together.

"Our new year begins with Pratipada (the first date of a month as per Hindu calendar). We derive our identity from Sanatana, from Lord Shri Ram. Bharatvarshis - what relationship do we share with each other? It is Jai Shri Ram, Jai Shri Ram. Best wishes for the administrative new year," Singh tweeted in chaste Hindi.

New Year greetings have also poured in from top political leaders in the state, including Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, his predecessor Rabri Devi, her husband and the incumbent's arch rival Lalu Prasad - who is in Ranchi serving sentences in fodder scam cases - and the couple's son and leader of the opposition in the state Assembly Tejashwi Yadav.