Actress Swara Bhaskar, in a social media post on Sunday, sharply criticised posts claiming that late Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) leader Sitaram Yechury was a “Christian” with a Hindu name.
The CPI(M) leader passed away on September 12 after battling a severe lung infection at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.
Following Yechury’s death, some social media users shared a picture of the leader’s embalmed body in a coffin, raising questions about whether he was a Christian.
Reacting strongly to such posts, Swara stated, “I doubt that Comrade Sitaram Yechury converted.”
The FLAMING IDIOCY of Sanghi trash will never fail to amaze me!!! (Read full post)
1. There is nothing wrong with being a Christian or converting to Christianity or any faith if you feel spiritually so inclined.
2. I doubt that Comrade Sitaram Yechury converted. His body is in a… pic.twitter.com/yMtETWX1ps
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 14, 2024
Sharing screenshots of the posts targeting the deceased leader, Swara wrote, “The flaming idiocy of Sanghi trash will never fail to amaze me!!!”
Responding to claims that “Sitaram Yechury was a Christian,” she remarked, “There is nothing wrong with being a Christian or converting to Christianity or any faith if you feel spiritually inclined.”
Editorial: Sitaram Yechury – A Stalwart Mourned By All
Explaining why the septuagenarian leader’s body was kept in a coffin, she said, “I doubt that Comrade Sitaram Yechury converted. His body is in a box because it is embalmed, as it has been donated to AIIMS for medical research! This is publicly available information.”
Expressing her outrage over the posts against the CPI(M) leader, she further stated, “He was a truly selfless man, committed to the cause of humanity’s betterment even after death! Meanwhile, the guttersnipes communalizing a communist leader’s death don’t even qualify to be called human!!!”
What did the posts say about Yechury’s religion?
One of the posts, a screenshot of which was shared by Swara Bhaskar, read, “So Sitaram Yechury was a Christian, no wonder he hated Hinduism. By the way, why do they hide their religious identity in their active political life???”
Another user demanded a law making it compulsory for Hindus who convert to Christianity to stop using Hindu names.
According reports, AIIMS issued a statement saying that Sitaram Yechury’s family had donated his body to the hospital for teaching and research purposes.
I Am A Brahmin: Yechury In Parliament
Yechury, who retired from the Rajya Sabha, shed light on his religious background in his farewell speech in the Upper House. “I was born in Madras General Hospital, now called Chennai, to a Telugu-speaking Brahmin family. My schooling took place in an Islamic cultural environment prevalent in Hyderabad under Nizam rule in the early years of independence, around 1956. I am married to someone whose father is a Sufi of the Islamic order, with the surname Chishti.”
He added, “What will my son be known as? Is he a Brahmin? A Muslim? A Hindu? What is he? There is nothing that can describe my son better than being an Indian. That is our country.”
Sitaram Yechury passed away on Thursday at AIIMS, New Delhi, at the age of 72. He had been admitted on August 19 with pneumonia and was in the ICU, receiving treatment for an acute respiratory tract infection. In his final days, he was on respiratory support, with his condition reported as critical.
