Kodagu: On Sunday, Union Minister Ananth Kumar Hegde, who is known to make controversial statements in the past, yet again flashed a row after he explained how to keep “Hindu girls safe.” Addressing a public event in Karnakata’s Kodagu, Hegde said that the hands which “touch” Hindu girls, should be “chopped off” and “cease to exist.” In a controversial statement, Hegde said, “There should be a fundamental shift in our thinking. We should keenly observe what's happening around us. Regardless of caste and religion, a hand that touches a Hindu girl should not exist. History is written like that.” 

Meanwhile, on Sunday during his speech, Hegde also claimed that the Taj Mahal in Agra was not built by Muslims and that it was a "Shiv Mandir called Tejo Mahalaya." He further said that  "Taj Mahal was not built by Muslims. It's definitely not built by Muslims, the history speaks for it. Shah Jahan in his autobiography has said he bought this palace from King Jayasimha. It's a Shiv Mandir built by King Paramatheertha, Tejo Mahalaya. Tejo Mahalaya became Taj Mahal. If we keep sleeping, most of our houses also will be named manzil. In future, Lord Ram will be called jahanpana and Sita will become bibi."

While on another hand, Karnataka Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao smashed Hegde for his controversial remarks, calling them “deplorable.” Gundu Rao tweeted, “What is ur achievements after becoming a Union Minister or as MP? What are your contributions to Karnataka's development? All I can say for sure, it's deplorable that such people have become ministers & have managed to get elected as MP's. (sic)” 

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Earlier, Hegde has come into controversies after making inappropriate statements on sensitive issues. Earlier this month, the Union Minister had claimed that the handling of the Sabarimala issue by the Kerala government was the "daylight rape" of Hindus. Last year, Hegde's statement had lowered the political discourse in Karnataka after he compared members of the Opposition parties to animals such as "crows, monkeys, foxes, and donkeys", smashing them for "coming together" to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming elections.

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