Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday hit back at Congress leader Digvijaya Singh for terming him a "dramatist" after he performed the 'kanya pujan' ritual as part of Navratri festival. Chouhan's criticism drew a stinging reaction from state Congress president Kamal Nath who accused the CM of playing vote politics even on "sacred spiritual work like Kanya Puja".
The chief minister also asked the Congress leadership to clear its stand on the "Sanatan sanskar" of worshipping girls in the form of Goddess, which is a tradition followed in many parts of the country to mark Navmi or the ninth day of Navratri.
Chouhan and his wife performed the ritual, which involves washing the feet of minor girls, at his official residence on Monday. "This is painful. Worshipping daughters is Sanatan sanskar and the entire country was doing this yesterday. You (Digvijaya Singh) term it natak-nautanki. This is your sanskar Digvijaya Singh," Chouhan told reporters when asked for his reaction.
After Chouhan performed the ritual, Singh said the CM is a "big dramatist" who speaks lies. "Only people with pure hurt can worship daughters and sisters. I want to ask Mallikarjun Kharge and Sonia Gandhi...Is worshipping daughters a natak-nautanki? What is the stand of Congress? Digvijay Singhji, while opposing Shivraj Singh and Sanatan Dharma, you have stooped so low that you are opposing the worship of daughters," Chouhan said.
Reacting to Chouhan's statement, Nath said he never thought that the MP chief minister would play vote politics even on a "sacred religious and spiritual work like Kanya Puja".
"If you are so concerned about Congress's (stand on) kanya pujan then what is the need to ask our national leaders? On the auspicious day of Mahanavmi (on Monday), kanya puja and bhandara (mass feast) were also organized in the state Congress Committee's office. You too could have come and taken prasad there," he said.
A kanya pujan ritual was also held in Chhindwara, Nath said. "You (Chouhan) could have come there and taken blessings from the goddess. But you will not do all this because you don't have faith in spirituality, religion and tradition. You believe only in bargaining of votes," said the Congress leader.
The single-phase polling in Madhya Pradesh will be held on November 17.
