‘They wove a web of lies, but the threads were too thin to hold’, the phrase resonated perfectly with the Chairperson of the Aam Aadmi Party who has been trying hard to portray himself as a staunch Hindu days ahead of the Delhi Assembly Election 2025. At an election rally in Vishwas Nagar on January 20th, Delhi’s former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal demonstrated a surprising lack of familiarity with the fundamentals of the Ramayana, a text that every Hindu is expected to be well-versed in.
While addressing the crowd, Arvind Kejriwal referenced an episode from the Ramayana to caution slum dwellers about the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, his reference contained several factual inaccuracies, which underscored his limited understanding and apparent lack of respect for Hindu Dharma and its revered epic. The instance uncovered his ‘Chunavi Hindu’ image which he has been trying hard to build in order to grab the Hindu votes while in the background indulging in blatant communal outreach to the Muslim vote banks.
While addressing the rally, Arvind Kejriwal narrated the story of Maa Sita’s abduction by Ravana, comparing BJP’s promises to the golden deer that lured Maa Sita in the Ramayana. He stated, “One day, Lord Rama went into the forest to arrange food, leaving Mata Sita in their hut under Lakshman’s protection. Ravan, disguised as a golden deer, arrived, and Sita urged Lakshman to fetch it for her. Though Lakshman initially resisted, Sita insisted, leaving him with no choice but to go. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Ravan changed his disguise and abducted Sita.”
Drawing a parallel, Arvind Kejriwal warned slum dwellers against falling for BJP’s promises, likening them to the golden deer. He accused the BJP of trying to mislead people by playing carrom with their children during elections, only to bring bulldozers to demolish slums afterward.
However, Arvind Kejriwal’s recounting of the Ramayana contained factual errors which the citizens of India were quick to point out. According to the Ramayana, Prabhu Shree Ram did not leave to arrange food but went in pursuit of the golden deer, which was Maricha, a demon allied with Ravan. Also Ravan did not appear as the deer; instead, he disguised himself as a Brahmin to abduct Maa Sita. Moreover, Lakshan did not go in pursuit of the golden deer but went to find Bhagwan Ram on orders of Maa Sita as she was worried for him.
Big row over Arvind Kejriwal misquotes Ramayan: BJP factchecks, fires “chunavi Hindu” barb, says “AAP Ram rajya model based on lies”#DelhiElections2025 #ITVideo | @PoojaShali @tweets_amit pic.twitter.com/VBXDZyEjH2
— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) January 21, 2025
Upon the development, BJP leader Parvesh Verma lashed out at Arvind Kejriwal on X (formerly Twitter), calling him a “seasonal Hindu” with “fake knowledge” of Hindu scriptures. Verma wrote, “In Ramayana, it was Maricha who took the form of the golden deer. Mata Sita requested Lord Ram, not Lakshman, to catch it. This reflects the superficial understanding of Hindu traditions by Kejriwal.”
Notorious for shirking responsibilty, accountabiliity and abject contempt to shame, Arvind Kejriwal doubled down rather than seeking apologies for misquoting and distorting facts of the revered Hindu epic, Ramayana. While through his remarks, he had insulted Lord Ram, Lord Lakshman, in his so-called clarification video, he brazenly furthered the falsehood yet again and furthered his lies saying that he spread lies and factual inaccurate things only about Ravan, to paint BJP as sympatisher of the demon Lanka naresh.
#WATCH | Delhi: On his remark regarding the Ramayana, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal says, “Yesterday I said that Ravana came as a golden deer and Mother Sita wanted that deer. They are saying that it was not Ravana (who came as a deer) but it was demon Marichi instead.… pic.twitter.com/TCQO3P0ujo
— ANI (@ANI) January 21, 2025
The shallow understanding of Arvind Kejriwal may not come as a shock to many, as most do not expect someone who shed tears for the Batla House terrorist to truly understand what the Ramayana is all about. Incidentally, he was one of the leading politician who were indirectly standing against the Hindu’s right to reclaim the birthplace of Prabhu Shri Ram, with his infamous remark, “Meri nani kehti thi ki mera Ram kisi ka masjid tod ke banaye gaye mandir mein nahi bas sakta.”
