Saraswati idol without saree: ABVP protests at Triputa college over ‘vulgarity’

Agartala: The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), along with Bajrang Dal, staged a protest at the Government College of Art and Craft in Tripura, alleging ‘vulgarity’ in an idol of goddess Saraswati crafted by the students and placed on the college premises, compelling the institutional authorities to drape a saree over the idol.

The right-wing activists barged into the college and protested saying it was vulgar and against the spirit of Indian culture and religious sentiments, disrupting the Saraswati Puja celebrations at the institute in Lichubagan after a video of the idol without a saree went viral on social media.

Dibakar Acharjee, the general secretary of the ABVP unit in Tripura, spearheaded the protest, expressing strong objections to what he considered a misguided portrayal of Goddess Saraswati.

"As we all know, today is Basant Panchami, and Goddess Saraswati is worshipped all over the country. In the very morning, we all got news that in the Government Art and Craft College, the idol of Goddess Saraswati was sculptured in a very wrong and vulgar way," Acharjee stated, as quoted by NDTV.

The protestors compelled the institute authorities to drape the idol with a saree. ABVP also demanded strict action against the college authority, urging Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha to intervene.

The college authorities clarified that the idol adhered to traditional sculpture forms observed in Hindu temples and was not intended to offend religious sentiments.

Subsequently, the authorities replaced the idol and covered it with plastic sheets, positioning it behind the puja pandal. Police visited the spot but no complaint was lodged by the college or the VHP and the Bajrang Dal, PTI quoted a senior officer.

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