Opposition Parties Fume as New Uttarakhand CM Tirath Rawat Equates PM Modi with Ram, Krishna

Dehradun: The opposition parties have reacted sharply to Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat’s recent comparison of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Lord Ram and Krishna. Equating Modi with Lord Ram while speaking at a programme in Haridwar on Sunday, Tirath, who replaced Trivendra Singh at the chief minister last week, said Lord Rama and Krishna left an impression on the society with their ‘good deeds’ and therefore are worshipped as God.

“Lord Ram in Treta Yuga and Lord Krishna in Dwapar Yuga worked for the same society and people hailed them as Gods. In the coming times, PM Narendra Modi will also be seen at par with Lord Ram and Krishna,” he said.

Tirath is presently Member of Parliament and also BJP’s national secretary. Modi, he said, has changed the way India is seen across the world. He concluded his praise for PM Modi with – ‘Modi Hai To Mumkin Hai (everything possible if Modi is there)’.

His praise, expectantly, did not go down well with the opposition parties with Congress leader and former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat saying, “I can understand CM (Tirath Rawat) has just got a new job and appears excited. But by no means we can equate a human being to God. The chief minister should not forget that he represents a state which is said to be ‘devbhoomi’ (abode of Gods).”

Samajwadi Party, the main opposition party in Uttar Pradesh, also slammed Tirath and BJP for equating the PM with Lord Ram. “One stadium has already been named (after PM). I suggest a temple should be constructed in Ayodhya (for PM),” tweeted Sunil Yadav, SP spokesperson.

The BJP top brass in Uttarakhand has, however, decided to keep mum about the controversy. State party president Madan Kaushik refused to comment when contacted. Party’s media in-charge Manveer Chauhan defended the chief minister’s statement, saying, “Lord Ram was known as ‘Maryada Purushottam’ (an ideal man) and Modiji is on the same path.”