Indian Prime Minister Modi 'appalled' by 'shocking' statue built to worship him
A statue of the leader was erected by fans, along with his Bharatiya Janta Party's lotus symbol
Helen Nianias
Thursday 12 February 2015
Narendra Modi expressed his horror at a temple built to deify him, saying it went against Indian culture.
The PM, who was instated last year, disapproved of the temple in Rajkot, Gujurat.
It was reported that approximately 350 of his supporters had collected funds to build the temple.
"I was appalled," he said. "This is shocking and against India’s great traditions. Building such temples is not what our culture teaches us." He also urged people who had built the temple "not to do it".
Modi used to be chief minister of the western state of Gujurat.
"We believe he is an incarnation of God as after he became chief minister of Gujarat things changed for the better," Modi supporter Ramesh Undhad told AFP news agency.
The controversial temple is now out of use
The temple has since been covered up and it's thought the Modi statue will be replaced by one of a Hindu god. However, another temple devoted to the PM in Uttar Pradesh is still in use.
Modi was unseated in a Delhi state assembly election today by the anti-corruption Aam Aadmi Party. This is a huge setback for the PM.
