Shivraj Singh Chouhan says India invented aeroplane before Wright brothers

Senior BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan has courted controversy, saying that with the 'Pushpaka Vimana' - the mythical flying chariot mentioned in Indian epics- India invented the aeroplane long before the Wright Brothers did.

‘Ancient India used drones, missiles’

Speaking at the Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research (IISER) in Bhopal, Chauhan, who is currently the Union Agriculture Minister, also said that India had learned to use drones and missiles thousands of years ago. He cited the Mahabharata as the basis of his claims, adding that India had access to advanced technology thousands of years ago.

"We had the Pushpak Viman long before the Wright brothers invented the aeroplane. Drones and missiles that we have today have already with us for thousands of years. We have read all this in the Mahabharata. Our country's science and technology were already developed thousands of years ago," said Chouhan recently, as quoted by NDTV.

Contrary to the claims made by the former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, standard history textbooks state that powered flight was first invented by Orville and Wilbur Wright in 1903 when they flew a motorised aircraft at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina.

Also Read: Mohan Yadav calls ‘Makhan Chor’ tag for Krishna improper, sparks row

Anurag Thakur’s 'first' space traveller

Earlier, BJP leader Anurag Thakur told students in Himachal Pradesh on National Space Day that it was Lord Hanuman who first travelled into space.

Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first human to travel to space aboard the Vostok 1 spacecraft on April 12, 1961. He was in space for 90 minutes before he returned safely to Earth.

Also Read: Meghalaya murder: MP CM wants parents to reconsider letting children travel so far

Mohan Yadav’s ‘makhan chor’ row

BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav recently courted controversy, with his remark that the popular epithet ‘makhan chor’ used for centuries by devotees for Lord Krishna was improper and unpleasant to hear.

Yadav had said that Lord Krishna stole butter to ensure that it did not end up in the hands of his enemy, the tyrant King Kansa. He said that Krishna formed a group of cowherd boys and raided places where butter was stocked and broke the pots to ensure no butter reached Kansa.

This drew a sharp retort from the Opposition Congress, which accused Yadav of seeking to rewrite Indian religious history.