The Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has directed Rudraprayag district magistrate Mangesh Ghildiyal to probe and take necessary action in a case wherein the police allegedly misbehaved with a family in Kedarnath. The CM has directed the DM to take action after conducting an impartial probe while also ascertaining the authenticity of the incident.
The DM informed that the joint magistrate and Kedarnath circle officer have been directed to jointly conduct the probe. They will check the CCTV footage and question other people as part of the inquiry. According to the initial report of the local police, a person who came to Kedarnath on June 6 has been stating through a video message that police personnel misbehaved with and manhandled his family. The authorities have stated that the number of people visiting Kedarnath is rising considerably by the day with long queues of pilgrims being formed here. Considering this, devotees have been asked to come out of the sanctum sanctorum without circling it and to not stand for long inside the temple. For this, a woman sub-inspector and police women have been posted inside the temple but some people are not happy with this arrangement. An official release also states that the said family cited the name of a ‘VIP’ from Madhya Pradesh while insisting to be let in the shrine. They also falsely claimed to have senior citizens with them. After they reportedly pushed around the police personnel to enter the shrine, the sub inspector brought them outside and explained that rules have to be observed. On their request, the police also helped the family have darshan in the shrine. Prima facie the allegations have not been substantiated but the incident is being investigated in detail. About 3.5 lakh people have visited Kedarnath so far and no such complaint had been received earlier.