In Cong vs BJP in Uttarakhand, a new row over wearing shoes in Kedarnath shrine

The Uttarakhand BJP said Congress state president Ganesh Godiyal and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamalnath were seen in Kedarnath shrine while wearing shoes in 2013

DEHRADUN: The ruling BJP and opposition Congress accused each other of “breaching the sanctity” of the Kedarnath shrine in the Rudraprayag district after the Congress insisted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders including chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami wore shoes in the shrine and sat in front of it by showing their back.

The Uttarakhand Congress, which has lately stepped up attacks on the BJP government ahead of assembly elections early next year, said it was unpardonable for BJP leaders to wear shoes in the shrine (ANI)

The context for the allegations first levelled by the Congress was the November 5 Kedarnath visit of Modi during which he performed a special puja at the shrine and then addressed a gathering in front of it from a makeshift stage. The Congress, which has lately stepped up attacks on the BJP government ahead of assembly elections early next year, said it was unpardonable.

“What Modi and the other BJP leaders did on that day, is unpardonable. They not just wore shoes in the temple but showed their backs towards Lord Kedarnath which was totally against the sanctity and faith,” said Harish Rawat, the former Uttarakhand chief minister and Congress national general secretary.

“The PM’s act of wearing shoes in the sacred place of Kedarnath temple has opened a Pandora’s box. Now, all the other BJP leaders will do the same by taking advantage of his act which has hurt the sentiments of devotees,” he said.

Launching its counterattack, the BJP cited the visit of present Congress state president Ganesh Godiyal and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamalnath in Kedarnath shrine while wearing shoes in 2013. “The Congress is accusing our leaders of breaching the sanctity of Kedarnath but they should not forget the acts of their own leaders. In 2013, Godiyal and Kamalnath had gone inside the temple wearing shoes that grossly breached the sanctity of the temple. The Congress should first look at its own acts than accusing us,” said BJP state vice president Devendra Bhasin.

Godiyal, however, refuted the allegations saying, “Kamalnath and I had visited the temple at the time of the 2013 tragedy during which bodies were lying in the temple premises. That time, our biggest duty was to rescue people and provide them with immediate help which we did.”