The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) said on Saturday that they will proceed for the Amarnath Yatra on June 3 despite the Jammu and Kashmir government's concern over inclement weather conditions there.
"VHP has planned to commence the Shri Amarnath Yatra from Jyeshth Purnima and shall send the first batch of devotees from Jammu on June 3. They will reach Baltal in the evening and shall have 'darshan' at the holy cave on June 4, the auspicious Jyeshth Purnima," VHP state president Rama Kant Dubey said.
He said that the first batch of devotees from different states across the country will reach Jammu by June 2.
Dubey said VHP was of the firm belief that Amarnath yatra should start from June 4 and culminate on Raksha Bandhan.
"We made repeated requests to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) to review their decision of starting the Amarnath yatra from June 25 but they haven't paid any heed to our demand," the VHP leader said.
"Delaying the yatra is unjustified, unconstitutional and against the Hindu faith. That is the reason we have decided to start the yatra on our own from Jyeshth Purnima," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"Delaying the yatra is unjustified, unconstitutional and against the Hindu faith. That is the reason we have decided to start the yatra on our own from Jyeshth Purnima," he said.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police Dibagh Singh said, "There have been concerns about the weather and I am hopeful that better sense will prevail among the people and they won't risk their lives."
Dilbagh was replying to a question whether police would stop the VHP from going ahead with its decision to start pilgrimage on said date.
"There are some issues related to the dates of the yatra, but I am hopeful that the contesting parties will arrive at a solution." He, however, warned that any act of violation will be dealt with accordingly.