Taking a stern note of Achyutanand Teerth of Haridwar-based Bhuma Niketan recently being anointed as the Shankaracharya of the revered Dwarika Peeth, a development that triggered a fierce controversy in the religious fraternity with the matter being dragged to the court, Akhil Bhartiya Akhara Parishad, the apex body of the saints, has made it clear during an informal meeting at Juna Akhara that such self-styled Shankaracharyas would not be allowed to participate in the Kumbh Mela, 2019. However, the proposed meeting meant to take action against the ‘fake’ Shankaracharyas and ‘Babas’ has been postponed to April 30. Recent deaths of two Akhara saints have been cited as the reason behind the postponement. The meeting would be held in Allahabad where the Shankaracharyas of the four ‘Maths’ are likely to attend.
The national president of All India Akhara Parishad Mahant Vinod Giri said, “Those seers alone who embody the spirit of true renunciation would be allotted lands in the Kumbh Nagar during the next Kumbh Mela. The holy congregation of the saints has no place for ‘Swayambhu Shankaracharyas’ (self-proclaimed Shankaracharyas).”
Speaking to The Pioneer, the spokesperson of Akhara Parishad, Mahant Narendra Giri said, “The Parishad being the supreme body of the saints, anyone of the fraternity found defying the policies of the body would be ostracized.”
Meanwhile, the Akhara Parishad has taken back Mahant Vinod Giri, who incurred the wrath of the seers’ body after he attended the anointment ceremony of Achyutanand Teerth, into the body after he apologized. The national vice- president of Juna Akhara, Mahant Prem Giri informed the decision while saying that the decision followed the apology sought by Giri.