DEHRADUN: Maharashtra government on Thursday granted permission to the chief priest of Kedarnath temple to travel to the shrine from the Nanded district of Maharashtra where he got stranded due to the lockdown.
The priest had earlier written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking help to reach the shrine before the opening of portals on April 29 morning.
Bhimashankar Ling, the chief priest said, "We have been granted permission to travel by the Maharashtra government. I will be reaching the shrine before April 29 along with four others."
The chief priest (Rawal) had sought special permission to travel by road along with his team and also bring the sacred gold crown of the deity which is to be kept in the main temple in Kedarnath when the shrine reopens.
Meanwhile, priests in Kedarnath refused online ceremony saying that the government should make arrangements for the travel of the chief priest.
According to a centuries-old tradition established at the time of Adi Shankaracharya, the head priest of the Kedarnath shrine has to be present for the rituals at the time when the deity is brought in procession to the Kedarnath temple from Ukhimath when the portals are opened in summer.