Amidst the debate over the 'caste' of Lord Hanuman, started by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a Jain monk claimed that the monkey god was actually a Jain.
Speaking at an election campaign in Alwar of Rajasthan, the UP chief minister had said Lord Hanuman was a dalit. Later, Union Minister Satyapal Singh refuted Adityanath's claim and told ANI, “During the time of Lord Ram and Lord Hanuman, in our country, no caste system was being followed in the society. No one was branded as a dalit or backward class."
Taking the debate further, in a video being circulated in the Hindi heartland by members of Jain community, Jain monk Acharya Nirbhay Sagar is seen claiming that Lord Hanuman belonged to their community. He offers multiple arguments to prove his point that the monkey god was not a ‘dalit’ as claimed by Adityanath.
According to Acharya Nirbhay Sagar, there are enough scriptural evidences to prove that Lord Hanuman belonged to Jain community. He said the monkey god was one among the 24 Kamdevs mentioned in the Jain scriptures and added that it is unfortunate that people are playing politics over a god.
Claiming that there was no evidence to prove that Lord Hanuman was a dalit, he dared anyone to prove otherwise. He said it is an undisputed fact that Hanuman was a Kshatriya before he became a Jain.
Later, when some people questioned his claim, Acharya Nirbhay Sagar spoke to media. He said there are 24 Kamdevs listed in Jain scriptures and Lord Hanuman is one among them and it is there for everyone to see. The monk, while explaining the Jain Darshan (philosophy), said there are 169 great souls (Mahapurush) listed in the scriptures and Lord Hanuman is one of them. Lord Hanuman has been given the stature of Kamdev since he was Kshatriya, the monk said.
Meanwhile, Devashish Jharaira, a dalit Congress leader from Madhya Pradesh, demanded that the UP chief minister appoints dalits as priests in Hanuman temples.
