VCK gen secy Ravikumar seeks law against superstitious practices

CHENNAI: VCK general secretary and Villupuram Lok Sabha MP D Ravikumar on Saturday demanded the state government to enact a law banning superstitious practices in the state like in Bihar and other states.

"If students started dancing frantically after listening to a spiritual song, it is not the failure of our educational system but the failure of our culture!" wrote Ravikumar in his social media post.

He added that education is imparted not only in classrooms but also in homes and streets. "We cannot save our young society if we spread the poisonous smoke of ignorance everywhere and inject the oxygen of science only in the classroom!" he asserted.

Pointing to the legislation brought against the superstitions in Bihar (1999), Maharashtra (2013) and Karnataka (2017), he appealed to Chief Minister MK Stalin to introduce a law against superstition in the state as well.

His demand for a law against superstition in the wake of controversy over a viral video of a group of government school students dancing to a devotional song at the Madurai Book Fair inauguration on Friday.

As the devotional song played, a group of schoolgirls seated near the stage became visibly emotional, chanting along and eventually dancing with an intensity that seemed to overwhelm them. Several of the students fainted, prompting members of the public to sprinkle water on their faces to revive them and help them to their seats.

The incident sparked a heated debate and some questioned the appropriateness of playing devotional songs at a government-organised event and argued with officials over the choice of program.