Legal Action Against Spiritual Leader Aniruddhacharya for Controversial Remarks About Women

After the controversial video gained significant backlash, Aniruddhacharya released a statement clarifying his position.

New Delhi:

A formal complaint has been lodged against spiritual leader Aniruddhacharya for allegedly making derogatory statements about women. Meera Rathore, who serves as the Agra District President of the All India Hindu Mahasabha, filed the complaint, which has now been accepted by the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court. The court has scheduled January 1 to record Rathore's official statement.

The controversy emerged from a video that became viral in October, where Aniruddhacharya made comments regarding young women and marriage. These remarks sparked extensive criticism across social media platforms, with numerous users and women's organizations condemning the statements as demeaning and reinforcing negative stereotypes about women.

Rathore, leading the Hindu Mahasabha's Agra unit, publicly criticized the comments, stating that such remarks were inappropriate coming from a religious leader. "Such statements do not befit our saints," she remarked. Initially, she submitted a complaint at the Vrindavan police station, but when no First Information Report (FIR) was registered, she took the matter to court.

As part of her protest, Rathore revealed she had taken a personal vow. "Ever since I filed the petition, my hair has remained loose," she explained. "I had decided that I would not tie my braid until a case was filed. Now that the court has accepted our petition, perhaps the time has come to tie it again."

She has called for formal legal proceedings and demanded that Aniruddhacharya be incarcerated for what she describes as "insulting remarks against women."

Manish Gupta, Rathore's legal counsel, confirmed that law enforcement had not acted upon the original complaint filed at Vrindavan Kotwali. He explained that the decision to approach the CJM court was made after police failed to register a case despite her formal objections.

Following the widespread criticism of the video, Aniruddhacharya issued a clarification claiming his words had been taken out of context. He maintained that his comments addressed both men and women equally and were not intended to single out women. "A woman who has relationships with multiple men cannot be of good character, and a man who has relationships with multiple women is considered an adulterer," he stated in his defense. "The matter was presented to the public in a distorted manner."

Aniruddhacharya contends that the viral clip excluded critical portions of his speech, resulting in an interpretation that differs significantly from what he intended to communicate.