NEW DELHI: Far from the maddening metropolis, a temple is being built on an area of around three acres surrounded by lush green fields of north Delhi’s Burari.
The temple, initially touted as the “Kedarnath Dham in Delhi” before a controversy erupted over the name, is said to be an exact replica of one of the most sacred Hindu shrines dedicated to Lord Kedarnath (Shiva) in Uttarakhand.
A foundation-laying ceremony of the temple was conducted on July 10 and attended by several senior BJP leaders, including Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
However, the Shri Kedarnath Dham Delhi Trust, the body overseeing the construction of the replica temple in Burari, found themselves on the receiving end of a major backlash from the priests of Kedarnath for creating a replica ‘Dham’ in the national capital.
The ‘original’ Kedarnath Dham, located in Uttarakhand’s Garhwal region, is one of the 12 ‘Jyotirlingas’ and among the four sacred Hindu shrines comprising the ‘Char Dham’ besides Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri.
The Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC), the apex body of shrines and temples in Uttarakhand, has threatened to take legal action against the Delhi Trust for planning to replicate the Kedarnath Dham.
With pressure mounting from all corners, the Delhi Trust is now planning to drop the ‘Dham’ from its name and replace it with ‘temple’.
The trust’s founder Surendra Rautela, while speaking to this newspaper, confirmed that they are dropping the word ‘Dham’. However, he asserted that they will not change the design of the upcoming structure, and go ahead with the plan – a replica of Kedarnath Dham.
“A Dham can never be created; it is the doing of the Gods. We, humans can only build temples in their honour. And we are not the first; a similar replica of the Kedarnath temple also exists in Indore in Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai,” Rautela shared with us.
Interestingly, the stone-laying ceremony on July 10 was marked by the presence of only BJP leaders while there were none from opposition parties. When asked about it, a temple trust member said,” We had sent invitations to every major political party and their leaders, including the Delhi Congress but we did not get any positive response.” However, the trust member confirmed that local AAP MLAs were present in the ‘Bhumi Pujan’.
According to the temple trust members, the estimated cost of the project is Rs 12-13 crore, and likely to be completed within the next two-three years. When asked about the sources of funding, the trustee said they are receiving donations. “Several people, native of Uttarakhand and residing in Delhi, are generously donating and even supporting the construction of the temple,” he said.
Shankaracharya slams ‘Kedarnath replica’
Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath Swami Avimukteshwaranand on Monday, July 15, vehemently opposed the replica ‘Kedarnath Dham’ being built in the national capital. Asserting that a ‘Dham’ is a seat of the Lord Shaiva and one of the twelve ‘Jyotirlingas’, the Hindu high priest said a Dham cannot be replicated, not minicing his words as he expressed his staunch discontent over the move.