New Delhi: The police in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Uttar Pradesh on Saturday (August 1) registered an FIR against Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP from Faizabad Awadhesh Prasad and independent MP from Purnia Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav for “insulting the religious sentiments of Hindus and the Sanatan Dharma.”The FIR, registered at the Kotwali police station in Varanasi based on the complaint of Jagadguru Balak Devacharya, the Peethadheeshwar of the Patalpuri Math in Varanasi says that Gandhi and the two MPs insulted the religious sentiments of millions of Hindus and cites their actions during a skit performed at the parliament compound on Friday (July 31) over the alleged theft of funds from the Ram temple in Ayodhya.“A public political demonstration was held in the Parliament complex, seemingly aimed at securing widespread media coverage and nationwide broadcast. During the demonstration, Rajesh Ranjan, alias Pappu Yadav, dressed in saffron robes, presented himself as a Hindu saint. During the demonstration, Rahul Gandhi symbolically and dramatically demonstrated the sacred offerings made by devotees at the Lord Shri Ram Temple,” says the FIR in Hindi.“During the demonstration, Awadhesh Prasad symbolically and dramatically demonstrated the sacred offerings made by devotees at the Lord Shri Ram Temple. Saffron robes, the image of Hindu saints, and the tradition of renunciation are considered highly sacred and revered in Sanatan Dharma, and were exploited for this public political demonstration,” it adds.The FIR says that the donations made by devotees at the Ram temple which is “a sacred symbol of their faith, belief, devotion, and religious dedication,” were made the subject of the demonstration.“This act prima facie appears to publicly ridicule and disrespect the Hindu saint tradition, Lord Shri Ram, and the religious faith of the devotees. This demonstration appears to be premeditated, coordinated, and organized, rather than spontaneous, with each participant having a predetermined role. A prima facie case exists of seriously hurting the religious sentiments of millions of Hindus by using religious symbols and matters of faith as a medium for political demonstration,” says the FIR.The FIR adds that such public demonstrations have the “potential to create religious discontent, tension, and animosity in society and adversely impact public peace and social harmony.”The case was registered under Sections 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 299 (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 302 (uttering words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings of any person) and 3(5) (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).The FIR says that following the broadcast of the incident, “numerous saints, devotees, and followers across the country expressed their deep anger and religious anguish to the complainant.”Members of the opposition INDIA bloc on Friday had staged a protest outside parliament with a skit in which they enacted the Ayodhya Ram Temple embezzlement, with Purnia MP Yadav wearing saffron robes and acting as a “priest” stealing donations being contributed by other MPs, including LoP in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi.The opposition protest took place at Makar Dwar, as opposition members stood with banners and posters against chadhava chori (offering theft).