NDA partner and former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi has asserted that he does not believe in Lord Ram, whom he dubbed an “imaginary” figure, and also criticised Hinduism, angering allies BJP and JDU.

Manjhi lambasted people belonging to the musahar (rat eater) and bhuiyan Dalit communities for indulging in Hindu practices like Satyanarayan Puja and also took on Brahmins. Manjhi, whose Hindustani Awam Morcha Secular (HAMS) has four MLAs and one MLC in Bihar, is a musahar.

“I do not believe in Ram. He was not a person. He is imaginary. People worship idols and Gods, so he is (a part of) faith. The Ramayana was written. It has many lines that are to be read and understood. We also discuss it at times. However, I am not ready to accept Ram as God,” Manjhi said at a public meeting on Saturday in Patna.

Pointing out that Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar had left Hinduism and died as a Buddhist in 1956, Manjhi added: “These days the poor are getting more inclined towards religion. Previously we did not know the name of Satyanarayan Puja, but these days such pujas are being performed in all our localities.”

He also touched upon the issue of priests not having food at Dalit households. “The… pandits come and say I will not eat here, but give me some money,” Manjhi said, using an expletive. He later said he had used the expletive to refer to people of his own community. “It seems some people misunderstood what I said and I am sorry about it,” he said.

A spokesperson of chief minister Nitish Kumar’s JDU, Neeraj Kumar, said: “There is communal harmony in Bihar and such statements cause bitterness. People should desist from this.”

BJP spokesperson Sanjay Singh said: “We should take care not to hurt the sentiments of others. Freedom of expression and speech does not mean that one should insult others. Manjhi is a senior leader. He is free to pray or not to pray or pray as he wishes to, but who is he to advise others?”

The Opposition RJD also took on Manjhi. “It is not his nature or character to insult any religion or caste. It seems that he has lost it since he has tagged along with the BJP and the RSS, which sow the seeds of hatred among religions and communities,” RJD spokesperson Mritunjay Tiwary said.

Irked by such comments, Manjhi shot back on Twitter on Sunday: “…These so-called politicians cannot speak when Dalits are insulted, but come out together from their burrows when a false video becomes viral.”