NEW DELHI: Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami recently performed the bhoomi pujan of a Kedarnath temple in Delhi‘s Burari — which is now a major controversy as Kedarnath priests questioned how there could be a second Kedarnath Temple at Delhi.
‘There can’t be symbolic Kedarnath’
Swami Avimukteshwaranand, Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath, expressed his strong reservation against the idea and said there cannot be a symbolic Kedarnath in Delhi.Kedarnath is in the Himalayas and it can’t be in Delhi, Shankaracharya said. “There cannot be a symbolic Kedarnath… 12 Jyotirlingas have been mentioned in the Shiv Puran, with name and location… When the address for Kedarnath is in the Himalayas, how can it be in Delhi?” Shankaracharya said.
“There are political reasons behind this… Political people are entering our religious places… There is a gold scam in Kedarnath. Why is that issue not raised? After doing a scam there, now Kedarnath will be built in Delhi? And then there will be another scam. 228kg of gold is missing from Kedarnath… No inquiry has started. Who is responsible for this?… Now they are saying they will build a Kedarnath in Delhi, this cannot happen,” he said.
‘Delhi Kedarnatth separate from Kedarnath Dham’
Kedarnath Dham Trust president Surinder Rautela said the Kedarnath temple to be built in Delhi is a temple, not a Dham and the Uttarakhand government has nothing to do with it. “The temple to be built in Delhi is being constructed by the trust (Shri Kedarnath Dham Trust, Delhi) and it has nothing to do with the Uttarakhand government. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami came on our request for the bhoomi pujan of the temple and the government has nothing to do with it. The temple is built with the support of trustees and many of them belong to Uttarakhand,” Rautela said.
“Many temples have already been built in the name of famous Dhams in different cities of the country, whether it is Kedarnath Temple in Indore or Badrinath Temple in Mumbai. These temples were also inaugurated by the former CM of Uttarakhand, Harish Rawat,” Rautela told ANI.
The controversy is politically motivated, Rautela said. “The controversy over naming the temple being built in Delhi as Shri Kedarnath Dham is just a political stunt that should be avoided. Some leaders are creating controversy just to satisfy their political needs. Uttarakhand’s Kedarnath Dham is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas. We are just creating a temple in Delhi and there are various such temples in different cities of India,” he said.
‘There can’t be symbolic Kedarnath’
Swami Avimukteshwaranand, Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath, expressed his strong reservation against the idea and said there cannot be a symbolic Kedarnath in Delhi.Kedarnath is in the Himalayas and it can’t be in Delhi, Shankaracharya said. “There cannot be a symbolic Kedarnath… 12 Jyotirlingas have been mentioned in the Shiv Puran, with name and location… When the address for Kedarnath is in the Himalayas, how can it be in Delhi?” Shankaracharya said.
“There are political reasons behind this… Political people are entering our religious places… There is a gold scam in Kedarnath. Why is that issue not raised? After doing a scam there, now Kedarnath will be built in Delhi? And then there will be another scam. 228kg of gold is missing from Kedarnath… No inquiry has started. Who is responsible for this?… Now they are saying they will build a Kedarnath in Delhi, this cannot happen,” he said.
‘Delhi Kedarnatth separate from Kedarnath Dham’
Kedarnath Dham Trust president Surinder Rautela said the Kedarnath temple to be built in Delhi is a temple, not a Dham and the Uttarakhand government has nothing to do with it. “The temple to be built in Delhi is being constructed by the trust (Shri Kedarnath Dham Trust, Delhi) and it has nothing to do with the Uttarakhand government. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami came on our request for the bhoomi pujan of the temple and the government has nothing to do with it. The temple is built with the support of trustees and many of them belong to Uttarakhand,” Rautela said.
“Many temples have already been built in the name of famous Dhams in different cities of the country, whether it is Kedarnath Temple in Indore or Badrinath Temple in Mumbai. These temples were also inaugurated by the former CM of Uttarakhand, Harish Rawat,” Rautela told ANI.
The controversy is politically motivated, Rautela said. “The controversy over naming the temple being built in Delhi as Shri Kedarnath Dham is just a political stunt that should be avoided. Some leaders are creating controversy just to satisfy their political needs. Uttarakhand’s Kedarnath Dham is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas. We are just creating a temple in Delhi and there are various such temples in different cities of India,” he said.
