Know why Drishti IAS founder’s comments on Lord Rama and Sita landed him in controversy

Hyderabad: A major controversy has broken out over a viral video of Dr Vikas Divyakirti, owner and director of popular UPSC coaching institute Drishti IAS, in which he said Lord Ram had compared Sita with ghee licked by a dog. The video was shared by RSS leader Sadhvi Prachi on Twitter with the BanDrishtiIAS hashtag. […]

Hyderabad: A major controversy has broken out over a viral video of Dr Vikas Divyakirti, owner and director of popular UPSC coaching institute Drishti IAS, in which he said Lord Ram had compared Sita with ghee licked by a dog.

The video was shared by RSS leader Sadhvi Prachi on Twitter with the BanDrishtiIAS hashtag.

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https://twitter.com/Sadhvi_prachi/status/1590894018162208768?s=20&t=ogdAtCvym-SbXRaPcBkbBg

In a video which was captured in a coaching classroom, Divyakirti was heard quoting a Sanskrit author, “I (Ram) did not fight this war for you (Sita) but for the respect of my lineage. As ghee licked by a dog is not fit for eating, you Sita, are not fit for me.”

The statement has sparked sharp criticism and led to #BanDrishtiIAS trend on Twitter with some even demanding a ban on the coaching institute for hurting Hindu sentiments. However, a few students have come in support of the Divyakriti and have floated the trend #ISupportDrishtiIAS.

A Twitter user posted the full video of the statement and said that, “If you want #BanDrishtiIAS, then prove that Vikas Divya Kirti’s statement is wrong.”

पहले पूरा देखो उसके बाद आंकलन किया करो

हम सनातनी है मूर्ख नही

गंदी राजनीति व @Sadhvi_prachi जैसे
कम समझदार लोगो के चक्कर मे न पड़े।

शिक्षा के मंदिरों को इससे दूर रखें

कुते वाला कथन .. किसी ग्रन्थ में कवि द्वारा कहा गया है

Say no to #BanDrishtiIAS #ISupportDrishtiIAS pic.twitter.com/Jhk8K5Rzh5

— Lekhraj Sarva (@LekhrajSarva) November 11, 2022

“In UPSC such questions come like, evaluate feminism in the context of Tulsidas. Tulsidas omitted those parts in his ‘Ramcharitmanas’ and proved to be progressive. This is not what Ram is saying. But the writer is saying through Ram. Writers put their words in their characters’ mouths. But Tulsidas was modern, he saw the advent of feminism and did not include this in his book,” Divyakriti can be heard saying in the full video of the class.

Some supporters even claimed that the remarks are written in the Valmiki Ramayan.

https://twitter.com/mogembo786/status/1590921881263435776?s=20&t=D0MwTXWfvdoPbsXxnYh8Fw

Divyakriti even gave an interview to ‘The Lallantop’ in which he said whatever he claimed in the video is supported by documents. He clarified that the statement is not he saying it but are the writer’s words.

विकास दिव्यकीर्ति माता सीता के वायरल वीडियो और उस पर जारी विवाद को लेकर लल्लनटॉप से क्या बोले? #VikasDivyakirti #DrishtiIAS pic.twitter.com/sakHALtL2J

— Saurabh Tripathi (@Saurabh_Pinch) November 11, 2022

In the interview, he said he was quoting from a book by Purushottam Agarwal. “He has been a member of the UPSC which means we can quote him in our studies. I have not read the ‘Ramayana’ or the ‘Mahabharata’ in Sanskrit. I came across this in this book which cites Valmiki Ramayan itself,” Divyakriti said, citing the page numbers where the information can be found.