Lord Hanuman was a Muslim, says BJP MLC Bukkal Nawab

The politics over caste, gotra and religion of Lord Hanuman does not seem to die down in India. Giving another edge to the political slugfest, Uttar Pradesh BJP Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Bukkal Nawab on Thursday claimed that the deity was a Muslim. Speaking to news agency ANI, Nawab said that Muslim names are much similar to that of Lord Hanuman. The video of Nawab showing him talking about the religion of Lord Hanuman has gone viral on social networking sites.

"I believe that Lord Hanuman was a Muslim. That is why the names of the people in Islam are almost similar to Lord Hanuman like - Rehman, Ramzan, Farman, Zeeshan and Qurban. Such types of names are found in Islam only," Nawab was quoted as saying by ANI. The BJP member further claimed that these names would not have existed if Lord Hanuman was not a Muslim.

#WATCH: BJP MLC Bukkal Nawab says "Hamara man'na hai Hanuman ji Muslaman theyy, isliye Musalmanon ke andar jo naam rakha jata hai Rehman, Ramzan, Farman, Zishan, Qurban jitne bhi naam rakhe jaate hain wo karib karib unhi par rakhe jaate hain." pic.twitter.com/1CoBIl4fPv

— ANI (@ANI) December 20, 2018

Read | Wrong to divide Gods into castes: Uttar Pradesh minister hits out at CM Yogi Adityanath

This is not the first time that Lord Hanuman’s religion or caste has been dragged into by politicians. In early December, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath raked up another political storm after he said that Lord Hanuman was a scheduled caste.

Addressing an election rally, in Rajasthan's Alwar, Adityanath said, "Hanuman was forest dweller, deprived and lower caste. Bajrang Bali worked to connect all Indian communities together, from north to south and east to west".

In a separate rally in Madhya Pradesh, while criticising Congress leader Kamal Nath for seeking 90 per cent of Muslim votes, Adityanath said, "Keep your Ali, Bajrang Bali is enough for us".

Read | Hanuman Jayanti: BJP, VHP celebrate in temples; TMC takes out colourful rallies

Adityanath's remark over Lord Hanuman's caste evoked a wide condemnation from across party lines with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav asking the chief minister to disclose the caste of other deities as well.