It is known to all devotees and followers of Sai Baba that he was a saint and was revered as one by Hindus and Muslims alike. He propagated a religion of love and encouraged celebrations of all festivals akin to both religions. In political terms, he can be regarded as a secular saint, venerated as an incarnation of god by Hindus as well as Muslims as in his eyes all were equal and he propagated “Sabka Malik Ek” (God is one). Maybe that’s the reason why he is being attacked by Hindutvawadipin-pricks. Secular people are generally an eye sore to such radical minded bigots.
About the post:In one such post by an account on Facebook called “शिवमब्राह्मणदादाभाई”, who has more than 2,500 followers, he attacks the identity of Sai Baba, who has been worshipped by scores of Hindus. He has uploaded an image of Sai Baba in which his name is written as “Chand Miya” and claims that his father was an Afghan. The post says demeaning things about his mother. The picture is accompanied by a long description saying how Sai Baba is actually a Muslim and the trust in Sai Baba’s name, as it stands in Shirdi, get funds from Muslims all over the world and it is a conspiracy to end Hinduism in India, without any basis for such ludicrous allegations.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=168731047662509&set=a.107480377120910&type=3&theater
The post even invited the following comment which shows a picture of Hanuman while violently attacking Sai baba says, “Now tell me how did you transform to “Sai ram” from Chand Miya Muhammad Khan” to which image of Sai Baba is shown as saying, “Two faced Hindus, made me so” :
Our take: Such an anti-religious attack attempted at a “secular”, Syncretic saint, who is revered as a god by Hindus is crossing a line even within the confines of Hinduism. Just because Sai Baba helped and served Hindus as well as Muslims in his lifetime, he is becoming an eye sore to such Hindu bigots, whose ultimate motive is only to create a sentiment of otheringand hatred against Muslim community.
Offence of hurting religious sentiments: Hurting religious sentiments, pertinent to this case,finds its place in the Indian Penal Code under section 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and Section 298 (Uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person).