Rajput body writes to PM Modi, urges him to 'stop distortion of Rajput history'
India Today
A Rajput body on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Modi, urging him to "stop distortion of Rajput history."
Ahead of the upcoming municipal elections in Delhi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is trying to retain its position in all three corporations, and its leaders are attempting to woo voters by installing statues of great warriors. However, in the process, the Delhi BJP has stepped on an issue that has caused quite a stir in Uttar Pradesh.
"We have forwarded the complaint to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The descendants of Samrat Mihir Bhoj have already objected to the issue,” said Mahendra Singh Tanwar, president of the Akhil Bhartiya Kshatriya Mahasabha (ABKM).
He added, “The Delhi BJP leaders are distorting Rajput history by attributing superhuman like characters of Durgadas Rathore, a Rathore Rajput from Mewar, and Samrat Mihir Bhoj, a Pratihar Rajput ruler to other communities.”
On March 5, Union minister and BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi unveiled a statue of 9th century Rajput ruler of northern India Samrat Mihir Bhoj, referring to him as a Gujjar.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) also dedicated a statue to Samrat Mihir Bhoj in Jaunpur village, referring to him as a Gujjar. These actions have been met with stiff opposition from the Rajput community.
In addition, former mayor of North MCD Jai Prakash inaugurated a statue of Marwar kingdom's 15th century warrior Durgadas Rathore, referring to him as a Teli, in a bid to woo the community.
While the Teli community claims that Durgadas Rathore was a member of their community, the Gujjar community makes the same claim about Samrat Mihir Bhoj. Historians, on the other hand, say they have found no evidence linking either of the figures to any non-Rajput community.
