As a result of his remarks that Lord Buddha was an incarnation of Lord Krishna, a group of Budhhists from Ahmedabad called for the removal of Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Thursday.
After “feeling religiously hurt” by the alleged statement, about 35 Buddhists, operating under the aegis of Gujarat Buddhist Academy, submitted a memorandum to Ahmedabad Collector.
According to the memorandum, the Bihar Governor allegedly made the statement at Bodh Gaya on May 5 at a programme organised by Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee to celebrate Budhha Jayanti. Arlekar, the memorandum stated, intentionally called Lord Budhha an incarnation of Lord Krishna and “polluted” the Budhhist culture. Buddhism does not believe in incarnation and hence, to call Budhha an incarnation of Krishna is against the spirit of Buddhism, the memorandum added. It further added that Buddhism is neither a branch nor a sect of Hinduism.
They also alleged that the Governor’s statement was a part of a conspiracy to misguide Budhhists.