The BJP leader said a new law with no room for graveyards should be enacted.
BJP leader Sakshi Maharaj today stirred up a storm with his remarks that there should be no graveyard at all in the country and all should be cremated, taking a cue from his party boss and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose graveyard-cremation ground statement triggered an uproar barely a week ago.
The BJP MP from Unnao said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi said a crematorium should be constructed next to a graveyard. But, graveyards should not be constructed at all. If this happens, all land in the country will be used for this purpose and no space will be left for practising agriculture... There will be no fields."
Sakshi Maharaj, who is known for his off-the cuff, occasionally controversial statements, claimed, "There is no tradition of constructing graveyards in Islamic countries across the world. The bodies are cremated in these countries. There are about 3.5 crore Hindu saints in India. They follow the tradition of burying the dead.
"So, I want to appeal to the Prime Minister that there should be only one cremation ground, which should lead to 'jannat' or 'moksh dwaar'."
The BJP leader said a new law with, "no room for graveyards should be enacted. There should be a joint crematorium for all. And if there is one, the outcome will be positive."
Later, clarifying his remarks, he said, "The population of the country is increasing and there is a paucity of land. Where will people live if all the land is used for constructing graveyards.
"I am not against what the Prime Minister has said. I said that whatever the name of the place maybe, it should serve the purpose of cremating the dead. There is no need to bury anyone," he added.