Amid recent controversy over building a replica of the Kedarnath temple in Delhi's Burari, the Kedarnath Dham Delhi Trust, which was overseeing the construction, announced on Monday that the project has been withdrawn. In an official statement, Suman Mittal, President of the Shri Kedarnath Dham Delhi Trust, confirmed the decision to discontinue the construction of the temple to avoid offending religious sentiments.
"We decided not to construct the temple as some people from Uttarakhand objected to it, and we realized that it would hurt religious sentiments," Mittal said. "We are not constructing any temple with that name now," she added. Following this decision, the trust has also stopped accepting online donations for the temple construction through a QR code.
It is important to note that the construction of the temple has been embroiled in controversy since the foundation stone laying ceremony, which was attended by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. The priests of the original Kedarnath temple, located in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag district, opposed the construction of the replica, arguing that it disrespected the original temple, one of the 12 'Jyotirlingas' in the country.
There was also controversy over the naming of the temple also. However, Surinder Rautela, head of the temple building trust, then clarified that the name of the "Delhi Kedarnath Temple" would be changed as sentiments were geting hurt. "If sentiments are being hurt by naming the temple to be built in Delhi as Kedarnath Temple, then the trust will change the name of the temple," Rautela stated.
Additionally, against the construction of the temple, the opposition Congress party organized a march (padyatra) from Har Ki Pauri in Haridwar to the proposed temple site to protest the construction. However, the march was called off on its tenth day, just before its conclusion, after heavy rains on the night of July 31 caused significant damage to the Kedarnath trek route.
(With inputs from PTI)
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