Old videos haunt Sonu Nigam after row over loudspeakers 

Singer Sonu Nigam has stood by his critical remarks over the use of loudspeakers in mosques, after being trolled on social media since Monday when he first tweeted out his thoughts.

In a tweet on Tuesday, Nigam said:

The latest statement by the singer comes a day after several Twitter users accused him of double-standards in criticising the use of loud-speakers in mosques, even as Nigam himself has performed at nigh-long jagrans, or religious gatherings, on several occasions in the past.

A Twitter user, who goes by the handle ‘Capt Pawan Kalkal’, shared an old tweet by Sonu Nigam.

Nigam has also lent his voice to many bhajans (devotional songs), which are often heard being played on loudspeakers in temples. The award-winning singer has also featured in music videos, another fact which wasn’t lost on social media users.

The whole controversy was triggered on Monday after Nigam sent out a series of tweets at 5:25 am on Monday morning,

Nigam was viciously attacked for his Monday’s tweet on social media. Some social media users pointed out that religious processions at temples also tend to get noisy at times.

To his trolls, Nigam quipped that he was against the use of loudspeakers in all religious institutions, and not just mosques.

However, there didn’t seem to be any respite for the singer. A video dated December 23, 2011 soon started to do rounds on social media, which showed Nigam’s apartment in a high-rise complex. Many argued that the video didn’t show a mosque near Nigam’s home.

There was also outpouring of support for the besieged singer, with senior journalist Sukumar Muralidharan stating in a Facebook post that "all religious observances should be confined to a private sphere".

“I support Sonu Nigam, except for when he says ‘I am not a Muslim’ as reason for resenting the loudspeaker calls to prayer from local mosques. He seems to assert that he wouldn't mind a kirtan call from a local temple. And imply that all Muslims would welcome the call to prayer from the local mosque, whatever the hour of day. In truth, our secular democratic ethics require that all religious observances be confined to a private sphere. To compel and coerce through the modern acoustic technologies is to insult a person's freedom to choose,” Muralidharan’s Facebook post read.

Seeking to put an end to the entire controversy, Sonu tweeted on Tuesday afternoon:

“It is not about Azaan or Aarti. It's about Loudspeaker.”