GOP leader remarks triggers row on Hanuman statue in TX ‘False Hindu God’ in a Christian nation

By Anjali Sharma

WASHINGTON – Republican leader in Texas Alexander Duncan on Tuesday triggers a massive controversy with his remarks on a Lord Hanuman statue installed in Sugar Land, Texas, on the premises of Shri Ashtalakshmi Temple.

Alexander Duncan, a Republican questioned the Lord Hanuman statue in a Christian nation.

A social media user schooled the Republican leader, stated that Vedas, the sacred Hindu texts, were written nearly 2000 years before Jesus walked the earth.

“Why are we allowing a false statue of a false Hindu God to be here in Texas? We are a CHRISTIAN nation,” Duncan wrote on X, shared a video of the statue.

He shared in another post the Bible’s Exodus 20:3-4, said “You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.”

His remarks prompted sharp criticism from several religious freedom advocates, with the Hindu American Foundation slammed his comments as “anti-Hindu and inflammatory”.

HAF also sought disciplinary action against Duncan for showing anti-Hindu hate.

“Hello @TexasGOP, will you be disciplining your senate candidate from your party who openly contravenes your own guidelines against discrimination—displaying some pretty sordid anti-Hindu hate—not to mention disrespect for the 1st Amendment’s Establishment Clause?” the HAF said on X

“Just because you’re not Hindu doesn’t make it false. The Vedas were written almost 2000 years before Jesus walked the earth and are extraordinary texts. And there’s obvious influences on Christianity…so it would be wise to honor and research the ‘religion’ that predates and influences yours,” he wrote.

The Lord Hanuman statue, also hailed as the Statue of Union, was unveiled in 2024. It is the third-tallest statue in the United States at present.