After Arvind Kejriwal's Hanuman Temple Visit, BJP Flags Act Of "Impurity"

Delhi Assembly Elections Voting: Arvind Kejriwal visited the Hanuman Temple on Friday.

Arvind Kejriwal, hitting out at the BJP for picking faults with his visit to a famed Hanuman temple before the Delhi vote, tweeted today: "May God bless everyone, even BJP leaders". The Chief Minister, posting a series of tweets as Delhi voted for assembly elections, complained that he had faced non-stop derision from BJP leaders since he recited the Hanuman Chalisa during a TV interview.

"Since I chanted the Hanuman Chalisa, BJP people have constantly made fun of me. Yesterday I went to the Hanuman temple. Today BJP leaders are saying my visit made the temple impure. What kind of politics is this? God belongs to everyone. God bless everyone, even BJP leaders. Everyone should be blessed," Mr Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

It was the BJP's Delhi chief Manoj Tiwari who raised the point that Mr Kejriwal had compromised the temple's purity by not following rules.

"Did he go to pray or make Hanuman-ji ashuddh (impure)? He took off his shoes and used the same hands to take flowers to the God? What has he done? When fake devotees come, this is what happens. I told the priest there, he washed the Hanuman idol multiple times," Manoj Tiwari said.

On Friday, the Chief Minister and his family visited the Hanuman temple near Connaught Place, which draws huge crowds.

"I took the blessings of Lord Hanuman and prayed for the development of Delhi and its people. Hanuman-ji told me, you are doing good work. Keep serving people, leave the rewards to me. I am hopeful that the results will be in the favour of people of Delhi. And whatever the results are, I will come to get his blessings again," Mr Kejriwal told reporters.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh hit out at Manoj Tiwari's comment and said: "Does BJP see the Chief Minister with such feeling of untouchability? There can't be a worse comment. You are still in the era when Dalits were not allowed in temples. Even Lord Ram can't save BJP."

Earlier, Mr Kejriwal's act of reciting the Hanuman Chalisa inspired broadsides from BJP leaders who accused him of treading soft Hindutva in his desperation to win the Delhi election.

The sparring over the temple visit on polling day is in line with one of the most polarising campaigns fought this time in Delhi, where Mr Kejriwal's ruling AAP faces a BJP aggressively trying to make a comeback to power in the capital after 20 years.

The results of the Delhi election will be declared on Tuesday.