Assam CM apologises for social media post about caste system after Opposition backlash

Himanta Biswa Sarma said that a verse from the Bhagavad Gita had been incorrectly translated in the post, due to which he deleted it.

Dec 29, 2023 - 14:30

Assam CM apologises for social media post about caste system after Opposition backlash

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday apologised for a Bhagavad Gita-based social media post about the caste system.

The now-deleted tweet, posted on Tuesday, had quoted a verse from the Hindu scripture that referred to the “natural duties” of the Vaishyas and Shudras. Sarma said that the verse had been translated incorrectly.

A Hindi translation of the verse said: “Agriculture, cow-rearing and trade are the natural duties of Vaishyas, while serving Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas is the natural duty of a Shudra”.

The tweet had drawn sharp reactions from Opposition leaders, including those from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.

On Thursday, Sarma said that he deleted the tweet as soon as he noticed that the quote was not translated properly.

“Recently one of my team members posted a sloka from Chapter 18 verse 44 with an incorrect translation,” Sarma said in a tweet. “As soon as I noticed the mistake, I promptly deleted the post. The state of Assam reflects a perfect picture of a casteless society, thanks to the reform movement led by Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardeva. If the deleted post has offended anyone, I sincerely apologize.”