Lucknow: An RSS-backed unit, Rashtriya Parv Evam Utsav Samiti, has started a signature campaign demanding 'Ramcharitmanas', the epic based on Ramayana and composed by 16th-century Bhakti poet Tulsidas, be declared as a "national book".
The campaign was initiated by the Samiti during an event organised at Prateek Sthal near 1090 crossing on the occasion of Chaitra Navratri, which marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year.
In a statement, the Samiti said that the event was primarily organised to throw light on the importance of the Hindu New Year and the importance of religion as a way of life.
The demand to declare Ramcharitmanas as 'national book' comes at a time when Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya's remarks on the epic have stirred a huge controversy.
Maurya alleged that certain verses of Ramcharitmanas were derogatory to certain sections of society, including the backward classes.