BJP minister mocked for saying ancient Indians invented internet

An Indian minister has been mocked after he claimed the internet was invented thousands of years ago by ancient Indians.

Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Deb while addressing a public function on Tuesday evening said the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata indicated that ancient India had internet and satellite communications.

"Internet and satellite communication had existed in the days of Mahabharata. How could Sanjaya (the charioteer of King Dhritarashtra) give a detailed account and description to the blind king about the battle of Kurukshetra? It means internet was there, the satellites and that technology was there in this country at that time," he said.

The BJP leader further said that European nations and the United States may claim that it is their invention, but it is actually India's technology.

"Internet and satellite system had existed in India millions of years ago. The richest culture belongs to our nation and I feel proud of it. Even today in internet and software technology, we are ahead. See Microsoft, it may be a US company but most of its engineers are all from our country," he added.

However, his comments did not find many takers and "Tripura CM Biplap Deb" started trending on Twitter with several mocking him.

However, even after criticism, Deb stood by his claim. According to NDTV, the minister defended his statement and spoke against "narrow minded people who find it tough to believe this." 

"Every Indian should have a common thinking that India is best and superior country all around the world," he said. "My country had the technology years ago, which no country had. I am proud of that and I think every Indian should feel proud. I want to repeat that we should accept the truth and should not get confused." 

The Tripura Chief Minister joins a fairly long list of Indian ministers belonging to the ruling BJP, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who have claimed several scientific or technological achievements were invented many centuries ago by Indians.

Modi in 2014 told a gathering of doctors and medical staff that cosmetic surgery existed in ancient India.

Further, in September 2017, junior education minister Satyapal Singh raised eyebrows when he claimed that the aeroplane was first mentioned in the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana.