Swami Aniruddhacharya addresses followers at a religious event amid rising protests over his viral comments.
A controversy erupted when a video of spiritual speaker Swami Aniruddhacharya went viral. In the video, Swamiji was accused of making demeaning remarks against women of age 25. The remarks were made in a religious sermon at Vrindavan's Gauri Gopal Ashram and led to widespread outrage, especially from women and demands for legal action.
The viral video shows Aniruddhacharya purportedly stating: "Ab ladki late hai 25 saal ki. Ab 25 saal ki ladki chaar jagah mu maar chuki hoti hai. Sab nahi par bahut. Aur wo 25 saal ki jab aati hai toh puri jawan hoke aati hai. Jab jawan hoke aayegi toh swabhavik hai ki uski jawani kahi fisal jaegi. (Now girls get married when they are 25 years old. By that time, most, not all, already have several men behind them. When a girl arrives at 25, she is mature. Of course, her youth somewhere may just escape.)"
He also mentioned some particular cases such as Sonam Raghuvanshi and Muskan Rastogi, saying, "Jaise ki ek honeymoon manane gayi, par wo kisi aur ke sath reh chuki thi, uske sath chakkar tha. Wo drum wala case purana nahi hua jyada. (Like a woman went on her honeymoon, but she had already stayed with someone else. That drum case is not even old.)"
Further, he is said to have stated that girls must be married off at the age of 14 so they settle in better in family environments.
The outrage was swift. According to Navbharat Times, lady activists belonging to the Mathura Bar Association called the remarks sexist and unconstitutional. They registered their complaint with the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and organized a protest at the Collectorate calling for stringent action against Aniruddhacharya.
Gunjan Sharma, state president of Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Sangharsh Nyas, reacted with anger, stating, "She said that she will kill such an Acharya with her shoe."
Pandit Dinesh Falahari, one of the major players in the Krishna Janmabhoomi case, also criticized the statement, referring to it as unbefitting a spiritual leader.
After the outrage, Aniruddhacharya posted a video on Instagram explaining his position and apologizing. He insisted that the viral video had been cut in a way to misinterpret his message.
"Even if my incomplete words have hurt anyone, I apologise. Whether it is a man or a woman, both should be character-oriented. My comments were directed at some individuals, not the entire society." he clarified.
He also stated that the segment of his speech which explained his statement was deliberately cut from the circulating video. In responding to queries regarding the genuineness of the video, Aniruddhacharya intimated the possibility of AI manipulation, "Nowadays, it is the era of AI. Anyone can present my words however they like, using AI, and the world will think it is the truth."
Despite the apology, several women’s groups and social organisations have continued their protests, demanding accountability for what they consider a deeply offensive and regressive statement.
