Row over ‘Ram in Haram’: AAP’s Sanjay Singh quoted Vajpayee; ‘insult’ claim by BJP baseless – Alt News

A video of Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh is going viral in which he is heard saying, “Haraam mein bhi Ram hai” (“There is Ram even in haram”). Several BJP politicians and Right-wing influencers on X have circulated the clip, strongly condemning the remark, which they claim was made in the Rajya Sabha.

BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya shared an X post stating that AAP had insulted “Bhagwan Ram and hurt the sentiments of Hindus.” Malviya also challenged Singh to make “similar remarks about the deities of other faiths and see where that leads (him).” (Archive)

After TMC and SP, now AAP has joined the list of parties that insult Bhagwan Ram and hurt the sentiments of Hindus.

If Sanjay Singh and others like him truly have a spine, let them dare make similar remarks about the deities of other faiths and see where that leads them.… pic.twitter.com/gQD7yW0zb4

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) December 19, 2025

Three official BJP pages — @BJP4India, @BJP4Delhi, and @BJP4MP — also shared the viral video condemning the remarks. “It is a direct and deliberate attack on the faith, honour, and trust of crores of Hindus”, wrote @BJP4India.

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Union minister Pralhad Joshi issued a statement in relation to the ‘incident’. “Congress and its friendly parties have never had any devotion towards Lord Ram, his existence and Ram Mandir. They have always done appeasement politics. So, people are showing them their place…”.

#WATCH | On AAP MP Sanjay Singh’s “Ram ke naam mein charitra hona chahiye, warna haram mein bhi Ram likha hua hai” statement in the House, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi says, “Congress and its friendly parties have never had any devotion towards Lord Ram, his existence and Ram… pic.twitter.com/rbUVp5uLmC

— ANI (@ANI) December 19, 2025

BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari and Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha worker Apurva Singh condemned Singh’s purported remarks about Hindu deity Ram. (Archives 1, 2)

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Right-wing influencer Raushan Sinha (@MrSinha_) shared the video. “If someone rhymes something similar for Islam, this same man will be seen raising STSJ slogans along with his Jihadi brothers”, he wrote. Others like Divya Gandotra Tandon (@divya_gandotra) and @MeghUpdates, too, amplified the claim. (Archives- 1, 2)

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Readers should note that BJP-supporting handles Raushan Sinha and MeghUpdates, and BJP leader Amit Malviya peddle false information and communal propaganda on a regular basis.  

Fact Check

When we looked for the full context of Sanjay Singh’s words, we found that he had made the remarks while referring to a speech by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Singh was opposing the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB G RAM G) Bill in the Rajya Sabha. Singh argued that merely naming a Bill, now an Act, after the Hindu deity Ram would not necessarily make it effective or meaningful. During his speech, he pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi, after whom the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is named, was himself a devotee of Ram. Ram would be disappointed that his devotee was being disrespected, he observed.

Then, he made a reference to an anecdote mentioned in journalist Ullekh NP’s book The Untold Vajpayee: Politician and Paradox (Random House India, 2018). The book recounts a conversation between Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the late Lok Janshakti Party leader Ram Vilas Paswan.

In a discussion on Ram and Hindutva, Paswan had quipped, “I have Ram in my name. Where does the BJP have Ram?” Vajpayee is said to have retorted, in his usual witty manner, “Paswan ji, Ram is present even in haram.”

In other words, when Sanjay Singh said “Ram is written even in Haram”, he was quoting former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The AAP MP’s speech is available on the official YouTube channel, Sansad TV. The full context of the remark can be found from the 4:00 minute mark.

Here is a transcript:

Manyavar, Rashtrapita Mahatma Gandhi jo ram rajya ki baat karte hai, Rashtrapita Mahamta Gandhi jo Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram ka paath karte the, Rashtrapita Mahatma Gandhi Bhagwan Shri Ram ke sacche bhakt the… iss sarkar ko aapke madhyam se kehne chahta hu Bhagwan ko apne bhakt se pyaar hota hai. Aaj Bhagwan Sri Ram aapko shraap de rahe honge ki tum humare bhakt ko apmanit kar rahe ho.. Bhagwan Sri Ram aapko jarur shraap de rahe honge manyvar… Manyvar main Shivraj Singh ji Chouhan krishimantri ji ko Atal ji ke ek ghatna se yaad dilana chahta hu, Ram ke naam ka mahatwa… ek pratidwandi ne bayaan dia manyavar, rajnaitik pratidwndi ne… agar atal ji ko puja karni hai toh meri puja kyun nahi karte… mere naam mein bhi Ram likha hua hai… atal ji ne usko jawaab diya Ram humare maryada ke prateek hai, Ram humare liye adarsh, Ram humare liye aradhya hai… duvtul. Arey Ram woh hai jo pita ka vachan nibhane ke liye 14 varsh tak vanvash mein rahe, Ram wohh hai jisne lanka ka naash kiya, Ram charitra ka naam, Ram maaryada ka naam hai, Ram adarsh ka naam, Ram ke naam mein charitra hona chahiye. Warna toh haram mein bhi Ram likha hua hai.

(Translation: Honourable Sir, our Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, spoke of Ram Rajya. Our Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, recited Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram. Mahatma Gandhi was a true devotee of Lord Ram. Through you, I want to tell this government that God loves His devotees. Today, Lord Shri Ram must be cursing you for insulting His devotee. Lord Shri Ram must surely be cursing you, Honourable Sir. I want to remind agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan of an incident involving Atal ji, to underline the significance of Ram’s name. A rival once made a statement.. a political opponent said, ‘If Atal ji has to worship, why not worship me? My name also has Ram in it.’ Atal ji replied that Ram is a symbol of our values; Ram is our ideal; Ram is our object of worship. Ram is the one who went into exile for 14 years to honour his father’s words; Ram is the one who destroyed Lanka. Ram signifies character, Ram signifies values, Ram signifies ideals. There must be character in the name of Ram; otherwise, even haram contains the word Ram.)

We reached out to journalist and author Ullekh NP whose book on Vajpayee included the anecdote. He confirmed that the episode was mentioned in his book. “I had picked it up from a 2014 story in The Indian Express by a very senior journalist, Sunil Jain. he passed away in 2021…” Ullekh said. He also shared with Alt News the relevant excerpt from the book.

We traced the said article in The Financial Express, another publication of the Express group.It can be read here.

Singh also tweeted a clarification with the relevant news bit carrying Vajpayee’s speech.

एक केंद्रीय मंत्री इतना बड़ा झूठ कैसे बोल सकता है?
जो बात अटल जी ने कही वो मैंने सदन में बताई अगर आपको आपत्ति है तो अटल जी के बयान के लिए माफ़ी माँगो।
नीचे प्रमाण है देखिए प्रहलाद जी। https://t.co/mgBGHMnwyf pic.twitter.com/nnqqvaspog

— Sanjay Singh AAP (@SanjayAzadSln) December 19, 2025

To sum up, the claim by BJP leaders and BJP’s social media army that AAP MP Sanjay Singh stated “there is Ram in haram” is false. The video they have shared has been clipped to present Singh’s words without context. Singh was referring to a humorous reply by Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Ram Vilas Paswan in which Vajpayee himself had made the observation.

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