Priests community of Badrinath Dham in collision course with Ukhand govt. On fast unto death protest at Badrinath Dham
The badly annoyed priests and petty shopkeepers including the residents of Badrinath Dham who had been in confrontation with the state government whose shops have been demolished and several houses on the verge of demolition having developed cracks as well due to the ongoing hi tech developmental plans worth crores of rupees for the last 1.5 months – has now come on a head on collision course with the chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami by way on sitting on fast unto death from 14 th August at Kedarnath Dham to register their protest and fulfillment of 11 points demands. In a memorandum addressed to the Uttarakhand chief minister already sent via the police SHO Badrinath Dham , the priests sitting on fast unto death have demanded clarification of displacement policy, houses to be given in place of house and land in place of the land gone in the development project ( double in quantity of the loss), four times economic compensation of the market rate, written clarification and assurance about the allotment of shops in Plaza, promissory notes to be issued regarding the market rate assurance given by the administration, reopening of the Kurum and Prahlad streams, the cracks developed in houses and roads etc due to the negligence of Gavar company should be rectified forthwith, the Panch Shilaas in ” Tapt Kund”, (hot water tank) since ancient times should not be tempered with, those who are living in rents in houses and are being confiscated by the govt should be allotted houses under the prime minister Awas Yojana , the land to be allotted to Panda community should be near the Tapt Kund and shops which were near Badrinath temple should be allotted on the same parameters near the temple. The signatories to the memorandum are Sanjay Kotiyal, general secretary, president Dimri Panchayat, Vinod Dimri, president of Master Plan Sangharsh Samittee Dr. Jamuna Raivani and the chief of Vyapar Sabha , Badrinath Vinod Navani. They have warned the government that if anything untoward happens to the protesting and fast unto death activists, the entire responsibility will be of the government.
Meanwhile, the Congress party had also tightened its belt to stand in solidarity with protesting priests after the Mandir Samittee chief n the management of BKMC were under question over the gold plates controversy that were fitted in Garb Grah of Kedarnath temple and one of the priests accusing them of a scam alleging about ” Brass plates fitted there in place of Gold plates “, donated by a Maharashtrian businessman from Mumbai. He had donated 230 kg of Gold which was alleged to have been clandestinely converted into Brass or siphoned off . However, this serious accusation was denied by the government and publicly assured of taking action against the fake charge accusers. The Uttarakhand Congress leader Mathura Prasad Joshi has accused the state government for demolishing the shops and houses of priests without giving them prior notices. These shops have been established since ages he said. He said that the shopkeepers and priests should have been brought into confidence before demolishing them and acquiring their lands. The Congress’s vociferous spokesperson Garima Dasauni while criticising the Uttarakhand BJP government said that about 75 shps and fifty houses of the priests have been demolished under this new Badrinath developmental plan without finalising any concrete ” REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION POLICY “. She urged that the chief minister should immediately go through their 11 demands and fulfill them forth with failing which the Congress party will resort to protest with the struggling priests community of Badrinath Dham.
