Patna: India’s federal minister Giriraj Singh has kicked off a fresh controversy alleging the missionary schools were producing “beef eaters”. He suggested that students should be taught ‘Bhagwad Gita’ and ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ to inculcate traditional Indian values so as to tame the rot.

“Although the Convent educated students go on to become IITians and qualify the prestigious Indian Civil Services exams yet overwhelming majority of them eat beef due to lack of familiarity with traditional values and culture,” Singh who holds the portfolios of Animal Husbandry, dairying and Fisheries told a function on Thursday.

He suggested the holy books on Hinduism such as ‘Bhagwad Gita’ and ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ should be taught in missionary schools to make the students aware about traditional values and culture so that they didn’t divert from the real path.

Earlier the firebrand Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) minister had set off another row by proposing two-child norm for every community to stabilise population growth and then blaming “religion” for the population boom in the country. He also favoured disfranchisement of those who have more than two children.

“India appears to be heading for another division in the name of culture as was seen in 1947 and hence all political parties must come forward to for a birth control law,” the minister had said, obliquely blaming Muslims for ignoring the birth control.

He also posted a graphic on his official twitter handle showing how India’s population recorded 366 per cent growth in between 1947 and 2019 whereas the US’ population grew by just 113 per cent during the same period.

The minister had triggered another controversy earlier when he described Muslims as the “descendants” of Lord Ram and then demanded for renaming all places associated with Mughals who ruled India for some 200 years.

“Won’t you claim your own properties which were once usurped by the powerful and mighty at one point of time?” Singh asked in October last year.

“Khilji had invaded and plundered Bihar. Yet there are many cities, such Bakhtiyarpur named after him,” rued Singh. Bakhtiyar Khilji, an Afghan military general, is said to have invaded Bihar some nine centuries ago on the directive of the then Sultan of Delhi Qutubuddin Aibak. And, so the town draws its name from the Afghan military rulers.