Krishna calls Russian envoy; convey concerns on Gita issue

Siberian court to hear petition to declare Gita an 'extremist text' tomorrow

PTI | December 27, 2011



India on Tuesday conveyed to Russia its concerns over the "sensitive" issue of a Siberian court hearing a petition seeking a ban on Bhagavad Gita and asked it to help resolve the matter.

Ahead of the court hearing on Wednesday in Tomsk city, external affairs minister S M Krishna called Russian Ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin and told him that the Russian Government should provide all possible help to resolve the issue.

Taking up the issue, which has created a uproar in India, strongly with the Russian Ambassador, Krishna conveyed the sensitivities involved in the issue of seeking a ban on the religious scripture, sources said.

During the meeting, Kadakin assured Krishna that the Russian Government will do all it can within its powers.

"The External Affairs Minister conveyed the concerns of the Parliament of India and the people of India on the issue. The Russian side has been saying that it is a judicial process and that it will take all steps it can within its power (to resolve the issue)," the sources said.

The Siberian court will hear tomorrow the petition from a group connected to the Christian Orthodox Church, seeking to declare the Gita an "extremist text".

This is the second time in four days that the Russian envoy has been called by the Ministry of External Affairs to convey the country's concerns on the issue. Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai had called Kadakin last week in this regard.

After the meeting, the Russian envoy told reporters that the Russian Government will do everything it can within in the realm of its powers.

"You understand that it is a court case but the Russian Government can do one thing. It can ask the people to express our love and admiration for the Gita. That (assurance) you can get from anyone in Russia," he said.

Comments

 

Other News

Cabinet passes resolution applauding PM on term record

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday passed a resolution marking June 10, 2026, as a historic milestone in the journey of Indian democracy applauding Narendra Modi for becoming the longest-serving elected PM of the country. By establishing a record of 4,399 days of continuous service as an elected PM, he has s

Testing the teachers, moving the goalposts

A teacher was appointed in 1999, before the Right to Education (RTE) Act came into force, and appointed under the rules that existed at that time. She gave the necessary test, passed it, passed the interview, and was appointed. Over the next 26 years, she taught thousands of children, faced transfer orde

`Focus on infra, reforms, digital connectivity has created strong foundation for growth`

In a step towards the operationalisation of the Bharat Audyogik Vikas Yojana (BHAVYA), union minister of commerce & industry Piyush Goyal launched the BHAVYA Portal on Monday in New Delhi.   Addressing the gathering, Goyal said that the BHAVYA scheme will adopt a competit

Govt, RBI announce major reforms to attract FPI

The finance ministry on Friday announced a series of measures aimed at enhancing the ease of investment for individual Persons Resident Outside India (PROIs) and Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs), and to attract stable long-term foreign capital flows.   Building on the recent in

Lessons in climate adaption from world’s largest inhabited river island

Majuli Island, perched between the Brahmaputra River to the south and east, the Subansiri River to the west, and a branch of the Brahmaputra to the north, has been severely affected by recurrent flooding and intense riverbank erosion. Despite its global importance in acquiring UNESCO tentative status for

Careless whispers and the impossible trinity

Time can never mend, the careless whispers of …    As the RBI marches ahead, for the upcoming monetary policy meeting this June, whispers from the corridors echo around several policy options to defend the rupee – by deploying forex reserves, raising in





Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter