Yoga day: Sushma Swaraj says Yogi Adityanath's comments on Surya Namaskar unfortunate

NEW DELHI: External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday cast aside BJP MP Yogi Adityanath's provocative remark that those who oppose “Surya Namaskar should drown in the sea" as “unfortunate" and made it clear that participation in the events to mark the International Yoga Day on June 21 was not compulsory .

“I differ with his (Yogi Adityanath's) comments. His comments were unfortunate," Swaraj said while briefing media about the elaborate arrangements made by the government to mark the occasion.

The minister, trying to dispel controversies surrounding the events, said, “This is a voluntary programme and nobody should be forced into it."

Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said at two different programmes in Lucknow that yoga is not binding on anybody and those having objections can stay away from the event.

She attributed apprehensions in certain sections of the minority community over the Yoga drill to “lack of information". “They are probably saying this because they don't have the information. 47 members-states of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) have not only supported the India led resolution at the UN but are also co-sponsoring the events," she said.

Answering a question on yoga guru Ramdev's comment that offering Namaz is similar to the yoga, Swaraj said, “I think Baba Ramdev intended to say that yoga is not a religious act."

Swaraj said 'Surya Namaskar' had been kept out of the common protocol because many people with certain physical ailments may not be able to do it.

At a time when preparations for celebration of the International Day of Yoga (IDY) had hit a snag with Pakistan refusing visa to an Indian yoga instructor, New Delhi has managed to find a solution without getting itself into a diplomatic twist. “There is no problem. They refused a visa. We did our internal arrangement there. But yoga will definitely happen there," external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said.

“We were not doing this programme by depending on them only." Swaraj said the denial of visa shows “their mindset", but added firmly that once the visa was denied, no more requests were made to Pakistani authorities. India will now hold an in-house event at its high commission in Islamabad to mark the day on June 21. It is learnt India has contacted yoga enthusiasts within Pakistan who will participate in the events at the high commission.