Devotees not allowed; but Vijayvargiya, BJP leaders attend ritual at MP temple

Ajay Pandit and Sanjay Pujari, the main priests of the temple, said the ritual was delayed by half an hour because of the visit of the BJP leaders. The two said they were stopped from entering the temple when the BJP leaders prayed

Published on: Aug 13, 2021, 16:31:53 IST

By Shruti Tomar

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Kailash Vijayvargiya and three other BJP leaders prayed at Madhya Pradesh’s Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain on Friday morning during Bhasm Aarti even as no person was supposed to be allowed inside the shrine’s sanctum sanctorum during the ritual, priests said.

BJP leader Kailash Vijaywargiya. (File photo)

Ajay Pandit and Sanjay Pujari, the main priests of the temple, said the ritual was delayed by half an hour because of the visit of the BJP leaders. The two said they were stopped from entering the temple when the BJP leaders prayed.

Another priest of the temple said the BJP leaders arrived around 3am and worshipped at sanctum sanctorum by offering milk and water to the deity on the occasion Naagpanchami. The temple administration locked gates and turned off the CCTV cameras as there was a ban on entry of any person into the sanctum sanctorum during Bhasm Aarti.

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Pandit said he stood outside the gate as he was also not allowed to go inside the temple for 45 minutes. “The VIP darshan broke the protocol of the temple. Bhasm Aarti was scheduled to be held between 4 am and 5 am. It started around 4.30 am as BJP leaders worshipped and delayed the arrangement for the aarti. The administration was so secretive about the VIP darshan that they locked all the gates.”

Pandit said he will raise the matter with chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to resolve this issue of “VIP darshan”. Pujari, who performed the aarti, said the system of VIP darshan is not a good idea.

Dinesh Jaiswal, the officer in charge of the temple who ordered the locking of temple gates, said he received an order and just followed it. “I will not say anything else on it.”

Vijayvargiya refused to comment.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

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