Birthday Blues: The controversy surrounding a temple-shaped cake cut by Kamal Nath

It was an early birthday celebration for senior Congress leader Kamal Nath, who turns 76 on Friday. There was cake, yes, and now there is a controversy surrounding it.Congress workers and supporters organised a celebration on Tuesday at Nath’s Assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara district. There were hymns and fireworks, as he was presented with gifts. The former chief minister’s followers felicitated him, calling him the Kohinoor of Indian politics. But it’s the cake that has become the talk of the town, as the video of Nath cutting it has now gone viral. It has also landed him in a soup.Also read: In 1984 carnage, unanswered questions remain over Kamal Nath's role: An eyewitness accountCake and the controversyBut why? Well, because the cake was temple-shaped; it was adorned with a saffron flag and an image of Lord Hanuman on top.What were Congress workers thinking? Nath had built a Hanuman Temple in Chhindwara and they thought of it as a tribute of sorts.‘Insult to Sanatan Dharma’But this has not gone down with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has accused Nath of hurting sentiments by cutting the cake with several religious symbols on it.“He (Kamal Nath) and his party are Bagula Bhagat (false devotees), who have nothing to do with god. He represents the same party that once opposed the construction of the Ram Temple. But on realising that it was damaging them electorally, he turned into a Hanuman Bhakt,” Chouhan said, according to a report on NDTV.“Can anyone imagine a birthday cake bearing the image of Lord Hanuman and also cutting the same cake? This amounts to insult to Sanatan Dharma and its followers," he added.The CM was not alone in his criticism. Chhindwara district president of the BJP Vivek Bunty Sahu held a press conference and slammed the Congress politician, saying that he might have built the Hanuman temple but he did not have faith. “Former CM Nath may have built Lord Hanuman’s temple but he does not have faith in the temple. He and his entire family often leave no stone unturned to play with the faith of Hindus,” he said.The Congress’ defenceWhat did Congress say? Party spokesperson Ajay Yadav said that Nath was a religious person and the cake was in the shape of a temple he built. “Supporters bring different types of gifts like cakes, flowers and garlands on the occasion of birthdays. It is not possible to separate the cakes and other materials which were brought by the workers. A worker has brought a cake of such artwork and it becomes difficult for the leaders to avoid the sentiments of workers,” he said.The Guru Nanak Jayanti rowHowever, this is not the first time the former MP CM has been in trouble over a religious matter. He recently received a lot of criticism after he was felicitated at an event in Indore to commemorate Guru Nanak Jayanti. Hymn singer (ragi) Manpreet Singh Kanpuri slammed the event organisers at Khalsa College for honouring Nath, an accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi and vowed never to return to the city.With inputs from agenciesRead all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.