Uttar Pradesh: SP MP Priya Saroj Slams Aniruddhacharya For Krishna Remark, Fuels Political Storm

A fresh political controversy has erupted over the ongoing verbal spat between former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and spiritual leader Aniruddhacharya Maharaj. Adding fuel to the fire, Samajwadi Party MP from Machhlishahr, Priya Saroj, posted a sharp comment on X (formerly Twitter) targeting the preacher and accusing him of distorting religious discourse to serve political ends.

In her post, Saroj wrote, “When a baba fails to answer a simple question about Lord Krishna, he resorts to dragging the name of the Samajwadi Party’s national president into a Hindu-Muslim narrative just to protect his image. This is what they preach in the name of religion.” The MP also shared a photograph of Aniruddhacharya along with her statement.

The post immediately stirred debate on social media. While some users hailed her statement as a “voice of truth and courage,” others criticized it as an attack on the religious community. Political analysts viewed Saroj’s post as a direct attack on Aniruddhacharya, especially her implied criticism that religious platforms are being misused to sow societal discord.

“This kind of rhetoric from religious stages is against Indian democracy and our cultural harmony,” she added in her post, hinting that such discourse could damage the secular fabric of the country.

Her remarks come at a time when a viral video featuring Akhilesh Yadav and Aniruddhacharya has reignited political tensions. In the video, which is said to be old, Yadav can be seen asking the preacher: “What was the first name by which Yashoda called Krishna?”

Aniruddhacharya replies that Yashoda used to call him by many names but probably addressed him as “Kanhaiya” first. Yadav responds by congratulating him and then quips, “This is where our paths diverge,” advising the preacher not to use the term “Shudra” in his discourses.

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Responding to the controversy during a sermon on July 16, Aniruddhacharya appeared to hit back without naming Akhilesh Yadav directly. He said, “A former Chief Minister told me that our paths are different just because I did not give the answer he wanted. But I told the truth. He doesn’t tell Muslims that their path is different. To them, he says, ‘your path is our path’.”

By framing the exchange in communal terms, Aniruddhacharya’s remarks further escalated the row, drawing criticism from multiple quarters for dragging religious identity into a cultural debate.

With both political and religious figures locked in a war of words, and with voices like Priya Saroj amplifying the issue on social media, the matter has taken on larger political overtones in Uttar Pradesh’s already charged atmosphere.