The competition to award 'caste certificate' to Lord Hanuman witnessed another episode on Friday with Uttar Pradesh minister claiming that the Hindu deity belonged to the Jat community.
"Jats are descendants of Lord Hanuman. Hanumanji was a Jat," Uttar Pradesh Religious Affairs Minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary said.
"Lord Ram's wife, goddess Sita, was abducted by Ravan, but Lanka was burnt by Hanumanji. It's injustice being done to someone by someone and the third person does not know either of them. This is the nature of Jats...they intervene whenever any injustice is done to anybody," Chaudhary said while explaining the rationale behind his statement.
Chaudhary's remark came a day after his party colleague and MLC Bukkal Nawab, said that Hanuman was "actually a Muslim".
"Hamara manana hai Hanuman ji Musalman thhe. Isliye Musalmanon ke andar jo naam rakha jata hai...Rehman, Ramzan, Farman, Zishan, Qurban...Jitne bhi naam rakhey jaate hain, woh karib-karib unhi par rakhe jaate hain," the legislator had said.
The debate over Hanuman's 'caste' had erupted after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during campaigning for Assembly elections, claimed that Hanuman was a Dalit.
"Hanuman was a forest dweller, deprived and a Dalit. Bajrang Bali worked to connect all Indian communities together, from north to south and east to
west," Adityanath had said.
WATCH: Leaders continue to award 'caste certificate' to Hanuman
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