After the United States Senator Kamala Harris's picture as Goddess Durga surfaced in the nation, a controversy has erupted in the nation. Hindu organizations in the US have now sought an apology from the niece who reportedly had tweeted an 'offensive' image of Kamala Harris.
What was weird about the pic?
The offensive picture depicted the Democratic vice presidential nominee as goddess Durga. Harris was seen killing US President Donald Trump, who was depicted as buffalo demon ''Mahishasura''. The image also showed Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden as a lion, the ''vahana'' (vehicle) of the goddess.
What happened next?
Notably, the tweet has now been deleted by Meena Harris (35), who is a niece to Kamala Harris. By profession, she is a lawyer, a children's book author, and the founder of the Phenomenal Woman Action Campaign, an organization that works to bring awareness to intersectional social causes.
Taking cognizance of the matter, Suhag A Shukla of the Hindu American-Foundation (HAF) in a tweet on Monday said, "Your tweeting a caricature of the feminine divine, Maa Durga, with faces superimposed, deeply aggrieved many Hindus globally."
HAF, which represents the Hindu American community, has issued a guideline for commercial use of images relating to the religion.
Here's the link to guidelines: https://www.hinduamerican.org/projects/commercial-use-hindu-images-guide
Rishi Bhutada of the Hindu American Political Action Committee said the "offensive" picture has not been created by Meena Harris herself. It had been circulating on WhatsApp prior to her tweet and the Biden campaign confirmed to him that the image was not created by it.
Also Read: About two-thirds of NRIs prefer Narendra Modi, but not as many will vote for Donald Trump
"Given that, I personally believe that an apology should come from Meena Harris even though she did delete the tweet and no one else. Our religious iconography should not be used in the service of politics in America -- I said the same when the Fort Bend County GOP did it in an ad in 2018, and it holds the same here," Mr. Bhutada said.
Ajay Shah, the convener of American Hindus Against Defamation, said in a statement the image has offended and outraged the religious community.
However, the deleted tweet which is now floating on the internet is a screenshot of which has been retweeted by some people, Meena Harris says: "I am actually speechless, other than to say that the first day of Navaratri was LIT."
Notably, over the weekend, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris had greeted the Hindu community residing in the US on the commencement of the pious occasion of Navratri and wished for the victory of good over evil once again.
"As the Hindu festival of Navratri begins, Jill and I send our best wishes to all those celebrating in the US and around the world. May good once again triumph over evil - and usher in new beginnings and opportunity for all," Biden, 77, had tweeted.
"@DouglasEmhoff and I wish our Hindu American friends and family, and all those celebrating, a very Happy Navratri! May this holiday serve as an inspiration to all of us to lift up our communities and build a more inclusive and just America," 55-year-old Senator Harris had tweeted.
"If you think you are going to win Hindu votes by mocking us, think again. This image is highly offensive and insulting to Hindus. Our Divinities are NOT cultural curios for you to mock and trivialise. And you delete without an apology?" eminent author Shefali Vaidya said in a tweet.