Accusing the State Government of not fulfilling assurances regarding the Char Dham Devsthanam Management Act, members of various bodies associated with the priestly works of the Char Dham and related shrines are preparing to approach the Supreme Court against the Act with the help of Rajya Sabha MP and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy.
The Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) is now going to be dissolved. It will be replaced by the Char Dham Devsthanam Management Board.
Bodies of the priestly fraternity have been opposing this change brought about with the passing of the Char Dham Devsthanam Management Act recently.
Talking to The Pioneer, Bhaskar Dimri of the Mool Panchayat Dimri Dharmik Kendriya Panchayat, Badrinath, said that the BKTC was formed in 1939. However, the State government has taken a wrong decision by facilitating the replacement of this committee by the Devsthanam board.
He further averred that recently on Vasant Panchami when the date for reopening of Badrinath shrine is arrived at ritually in the palace of the erstwhile king of Tehri, there was interference by administrative staff against which the Purohits sported black ribbons in protest for the first time in history of the ritual.
Now, the Mahapanchayat of Teerth Purohits and traditional stakeholders is preparing to file a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court against the Devsthanam Board. Dimri said that members of the fraternity had recently met MP and senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy regarding this issue. He said that Swamy had opined that the said Act appeared unconstitutional and would be quashed by the Apex court. The Mahapanchayat members are preparing the documentation and paper work in this case and the PIL is expected to be filed soon, added Dimri.
Meanwhile, when the BKTC chairman Mohan Prasad Thapliyal was asked about this, he said that the Devsthanam board is a much needed development.
The number of pilgrims visiting the Char Dham shrines has been increasing consistently.
The creation of the Devsthanam management board is an effective measure to ensure necessary and proper facilities to cater to the growing number of pilgrims, he added.