Bettiah, Oct. 4 -- Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati Maharaj said that the "I Love Muhammad-Mahadev" is a deliberate attempt to divert attention from more pressing matters.

He questioned whether Mahadev is a matter of worship or love, emphasising that such language is disrespectful and not befitting of the deity.

"... 'I love Mohammed, I love Mahadev' row has been started to distract the public from the real issues. Is Mahadev a matter of worship or love? This is an insult to Mahadev. I don't know about Mohammed. Those who are with Mohammed may know about him. But is saying, "I love Mahadev," an honour or an insult to Mahadev? This is disrespectful to Mahadev, an insult to Mahadev. We don't use such language with Mahadev...