Veteran lyricist Javed Akhar ‘shamed’ by removal of Jesus Christ statue from hill near Bengaluru

Tribune Web Desk
Chandigarh, March 8

Veteran lyricist and poet Javed Akhtar has shared his views on the removal of a Jesus Christ statute from a hill near Bengaluru.

The 75-year-old poet said that as an atheist the move has caused him to “hang his head in shame”.

Akhtar, while recognising the removal was carried out on orders from the Karnataka government, also highlighted India’s religious diversity and tolerance. He recalled that a church had been built in Agra with “permission and blessings” of a Mughal emperor Akbar.

Sharing a series of tweets, Akhtar wrote: “Although I am an Athiest I hang my head in shame as an Indian that near Banglore a statue of Jesus was removed with a crane by the police following the orders of Karnataka Govt”.

 “The first church made in India (out of Portuguese territories) was in Agra during Akbar’s regime with his permission and blessings”, he added.

The statue of Jesus Christ and 14 Stations of the Cross had been removed, without damage, from a hill in Devanahalli town, which is around 40 kilometers from Bengaluru, on Friday and handed over to church authorities.

The development comes over a month after a major controversy erupted in connection with the proposed installation of a Christ statue in Kapalabetta hillock, 30 km from Bengaluru.