Ramdev opposes SC ban on firecrackers, says 'Hindus being targeted'

Baba Ramdev has opposed the Supreme Court order on firecracker ban in Delhi-NCR and said that a particular community is being targetted.

New Delhi: Opposing Supreme Court ban on the sale of firecrackers across Delhi-NCR, yoga guru Baba Ramdev said that one particular community is being targeted. 

The famous yoga guru was speaking on the issue of firecracker ban to a television channel when he said that Hindus are being targeted. He also asserted that the way Hindu festivals have come under the radar is wrong. 

Ramdev also launched an attack on senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for supporting court's ban on firecrackers and said, "an intelligent man like Tharoor must not talk like this."

Tharoor, in support of the ban, had tweeted, "Your examples of practices integral to those observances; banning them would be like banning lamps on Diwali. Firecrackers are unholy add-ons."

On October 9, ahead of Diwali, the Supreme Court upheld the suspension of licenses for sale of firecrackers in the national capital.

The ban on sale and stocking of firecrackers will be in effect until November 1, 2017.

Last year, the top court suspended all licences which "permit the sale of fireworks, wholesale and retail within the territory of NCR".

The immediate effect of the order was also made clear by the top court which ordered "forthwith" suspension of temporary licences issued by the police for sale of firecrackers pursuant to the order of September 12.

A bench headed by Justice AK Sikri said that the November 11, 2016, order suspending the licences "should be given one chance to test itself" to see if there would be a positive effect of this, particularly during Diwali.

The apex court in 2005 had also directed that there should be a complete ban on bursting sound-emitting firecrackers between 10 pm and 6 am.