Rahul Gandhi and Dhirendra Shastri with Union state communication minister, MP and former MLA visit Kedarnath. Slogans of Modi Modi raised

The historic Kedarnath Dham and Badrinath Dham were the centres of attraction today when two important and popular dignitaries visited there and paid their obeisances to Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu inviting attention of the media, electronics and print.

While, the former Congressman chief and Waynad MP Rahul Gandhi took out his pivotal time from the campaigning in five states to visit Kedarnath Dham to seek blessings of Lord Kedar, keeping his visit extremely personal, a union state minister for communications, Dev Singh Chouhan, a Gorakhpur, Basganv MP Kailash Paswan and a former controversial BJP MLA Sangeet Som, Gupta brothers from Mumbai who donated more than 200 kgs of Gold at the temple and controversial but popular young saint Dhirendra Shastri aka Bageshwar Dham along with several prominent saffron clad seers visited Kedarnath and Badrinath to pay their obeisances.

While Rahul Gandhi arrived in the morning secretively not announcing about his visit, landing at Jolly Grant Airport, Rishikesh along with his high class security personnel with no Congress leader to be seen near him, it was only at Kedarnath Dham that the former Uttarakhand Congress president Ganesh Godiyal was seen with Rahul acknowledging greetings from pilgrims and shaking hands with people and no other Congress leader being around.

Rahul was in a jubilant mode seeking blessings of Lord Kedar after offering prayers with no pomp and show as usually happens with politicians, especially those with the ruling political establishment.

On the other hand controversial young saint, quite popular globally, known as Bageshwar Dham Dhirendra Shastri who had come to Dehradun two days ago meeting his disciples reached Kedarnath Dham in the morning at around 11 along with good number of prominent saffron clad saints like Acharya Mahamandleshwar Niranjani Aakhada Kailashanand Giri, former UP Saharanpur MLA Sangeet Som, Saint Radhe Baba, Chidanand from Parmarth Niketan etc.

After being at Kedarnath and performing prayers and rituals at Garb Grah and outside, these saints reached Badrinath Dham at 2.00 AM and were the star attractions.

The union minister of state for communications Dev Singh Chouhan who had come here with his family also inspected master plan renovation and modernisation works at the Kedarnath Shrine precincts and offered prayers at the historic temple.

At Kedarnath site when Rahul and his entourage was on way to the temple , there were slogans praising PM Modi by the passers by or pilgrims as seen in a video posted by somebody in X earlier twitter.

Meanwhile, people in social media are strongly objecting to the pictures taken by cameras and mobiles in or near Garbhgrah, of Kedarnath temple violating the rules of Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee which had clearly ruled months ago forbidding clicking pictures, selfies, video etc by mobiles or cameras at the temple site especially at Garb Grah. Several pictures are being posted in social media showing Dhirendra Shastri aka Bageshwar Dham baba and Parmarth Niketan saint Chidanand offering prayers at Garb Grah . Those active on X are asking what happened to the rules, now ? How were the mobiles and cameras allowed inside the Garb Grah or near the temple to take pictures which was strictly forbidden. Taking a strong view of the photos allowed inside the Garbha Grah of Kedarnath Temple SR journalist RAJIV NAYAN BAHUGUNA said :

Taking photo of the sanctum sanctorum of Shri Kedarnath Dham is a legal offence. It has been said that this violates divine dignity and sovereignty. If this is true, then they will all be destroyed if they break the divine law. May God’s wrath be upon them