Rajya Sabha member Sudha Murty found herself in the midst of an online debate after sharing a video on Monday. The video, in which she attributed the origin of Raksha Bandhan to a story involving Mughal emperor Humayun and Chittor's Rani Karnavati, sparked controversy and led to her being trolled.
In response to the backlash, Murty issued a clarification, stating the story she shared was "one of many tales" associated with the festival. "The story I shared on Raksha Bandhan is just one of many tales associated with the festival and certainly not its origin," she explained in a post on Tuesday.
"My intention was to highlight one of the many stories I learnt about when growing up, about the beautiful symbolism behind Raksha Bandhan," she wrote.
Murty had shared a post on X, detailing what she called the "rich history" of Raksha Bandhan. She stated that the festival's tradition could be traced back to "Rani Karnavati sending a thread to Humayun" in the 16th century.
In the video, Murty explained, "Raksha Bandhan has a rich history. When Rani Karnavati was in danger, she sent a thread to King Humayun as a symbol of sibling-hood, asking for his help. This is where the tradition of the thread began, and it continues to this day."
Murty described Raksha Bandhan as an important festival celebrating the brother-sister bond. She recounted the story of Rani Karnavati who, in a time of crisis, sent a thread to Humayun, asking him to protect her as a brother. Although Humayun attempted to help, he arrived too late.
Amidst the backlash, some users accused Murty of promoting a "fake story" and questioned her choice of highlighting a Mughal connection to a Hindu festival.
One user commented, "Words spoken can't be taken back. Left Krishna and Draupadi's story and landed in Humayun. What a fall."
Another remarked, "There is no truth to it. It's a fake story."
Yet another comment read, "Of all the stories, you chose Humayun's connection to showcase our Hindu tradition of Raksha Bandhan. Beauty of Secularism ."
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