In a controversial segment of its September 2023 podcast, leftist portal Newslaundry’s commentators suggested that the Hindu festival of Dussehra “normalizes violence” among children.
In the discussion, Abhinandan Sekhri compared Dussehra to Lohri, noting that while Lohri involves a simple bonfire, Dussehra involves burning humanoid effigies, which they claimed could “normalize” the idea of harming others in a child’s mind.
He said, “You know Dussehra, I think it’s wonderful that… good triumphed over evil or whatever your definition of good or evil is, but just a custom; see I like Lohri because it is just a bonfire. Here the figure is a humanoid, it is a human being and you’re going and setting him on fire and you’re seeing that normalized from a very young age. I think it is normalized in your head. I am not saying you go around burning people but I’m just saying that for a child, telling him that we’re going to celebrate this – what – you see that Uncle with a beard now we’ll go set him on fire. I think as a custom….”
Just a reminder:
Liberals believe that Dussehra normalizes violence
Apparently, it makes children believe that it is okay to set human beings on fire
Remember that this is considered highest intellectualism
If you disagree, you will be called “Whatsapp University” pic.twitter.com/ZIi7Z4rFhV
— Abhishek (@AbhishBanerj) October 1, 2025
The argument posits that the act of burning a human-like figure could desensitize young minds to violence, blurring the lines between symbolic ritual and real-world action.
While the other panelists called Sekhri’s comment as “overthinking”, it is clear that liberals would go to any extent to derogate and denounce Hindu festivals. If any non-liberal would contest these observations, they would be laughed off as “WhatsApp University” and shamed.
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