A wedding ceremony of two frogs was held in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhatarpur on Friday to appease Lord Indra to bring rains in the drought-hit district in Bundelkhand region of the state. What is, however, being criticised is the presence of Lalita Yadav, the Minister of State for Woman and Child Development in Madhya Pradesh, at the ceremony.
According to reports, the elaborate ‘marriage’ ceremony was organised by the minister at a temple in Chhatarpur. Both critics and opposition parties have accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader of encouraging superstitious beliefs.
The frog wedding, which was attended by hundreds of people, was solemnised by temple priest Acharya Brijnandan.
Hindustan Times quotes the priest saying that the marriage and subsequent feast are very old traditions to please gods.
Yadav, who represents Chhatarpur constituency, said that the ceremony was a “logical tradition” to “balance the environment”. “We have prayed to god for rain in drought hit Bundelkhand region and for the welfare of our farmers,” she told ANI.
But critics were not convinced. The Congress said that the instead of organising such rituals the minister could have provided drinking water in the area.
Chhatarpur has been facing a severe drought-crisis for the last two years.