‘Vulgar’ Saraswati idol at Tripura Government College of Art and Craft sparks row, authorities replace it with new one after protests

‘Vulgar’ Saraswati idol at Tripura Government College of Art and Craft sparks row, authorities replace it with new one after protests

A group of activists staged a protest at the Tripura Government College of Art and Craft over purported vulgarity in an idol of Goddess Saraswati being worshipped on Wednesday at the college premises. Later, the idol was replaced with a new one.

Members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-affiliated student body Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) reached the college and protested against the idol of Goddess Saraswati and claimed it was “vulgar” and contrary to the spirit of Indian culture and religious sentiments.

The controversy erupted while the puja rituals were in progress and students of the college were present at the spot. The idol was then draped with a saree kept for a different ritual but eventually, it was replaced.

ABVP Tripura state general secretary Dibakar Acharjee led the protest and said, “This idol is vulgar and hurts religious sentiments. We want to know which statue or idol’s sculpture did it follow. We don’t want anyone to play with the sentiments of our tradition.”

Faced by protests, Abhijit Bhattacharjee, principal in-charge of the Government College of Art and Craft said, “The idol had followed the sculpture style of different idols as found in different temples of northern and southern India. The idol didn’t copy the statues but followed the style of sculpture. But we certainly didn’t want to hurt anyone’s sentiments. Some people protested against it and we agreed with them. We have replaced the idol.”

The issue got traction on social media, where several netizens said the first idol had hurt religious sentiments and shouldn’t have been allowed by the college and its faculty members to be used for the puja.

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