A Brahmin group in Rajasthan sent Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath a legal notice and sought an apology from him within three days for saying that Hindu god Hanuman was a Dalit, PTI reported on Wednesday.

The chief minister made the comments at an election rally in Rajasthan’s Alwar district on Tuesday. “Hanuman was a forest dweller, deprived and a Dalit,” Adityanath had said in Malakheda. “Bajrang Bali worked to connect all Indian communities together, from north to south and east to west.” Assembly elections will be held in Rajasthan on December 7. Adityanath is currently campaigning for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state.

Rajasthan Sarv Brahmin Mahasabha President Suresh Mishra accused Adityanath of using Hanuman’s caste for political gain and said the statement hurt religious sentiments of several devotees. “I am saddened that Uttar Pradesh chief minister called Lord Hanuman deprived,” said the notice. “Those who are deprived, they get strength to fight the odds. It is a sheer attempt to take political mileage in election.”

“We demand that Yogi make an apology for his comments on Lord Hanuman publicly within three days, or else a lawsuit will be filed against him,” DNA quoted Mishra as saying. “Our organisation will not tolerate such comments.”

Congress leader Pramod Tiwari criticised Adityanath’s comments and accused the BJP of categorising gods into castes.