Katra : Shiv Sena (UBT) and Swami Rajeshwaranand Ji Maharaj from Sant Samaj has demanded accountability and refund of registration fee by Shri Amarnath Shrine Board after the disappearance of the Holy Him Shivling within two weeks of the start of the annual Shri Amarnath Yatra which is going on from 29 June to 18 August.
In a special conversation with journalists at Shri Raj Mata Shani Mandir in Katra, Shiv Sena (UBT) State Chief Manish Sahni and Swami Rajeshwaranand Ji Maharaj said that devotees wait eagerly for the whole year to have darshan of natural Him-Shivling in Shri Amarnath cave. During the Yatra, the whole of Jammu and Kashmir reverberates with the chants of Bam Bam Bhole. During this time, while Bhole Baba devotees are delighted with the darshan of the Holy ice Shivling and the tourism business of Jammu and Kashmir also gets a special boost. But for the last few years, the disappearance of the Holy Him-Shivling before the completion of the Yatra period has caused great disappointment among the devotees, the effect of which is clearly visible in the form of a decline in the number of devotees.
This year, on 29 June, within just ten days of the 50-day long Yatra, the Holy Him Shivling disappeared. Due to which, the devotees who reached for the darshan are naturally disappointed and angry with the Shrine Board and the administration. At the same time, there is a state of disappointment among the people associated with the tourist business as well.Sahni took the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board to task and said that it is the responsibility of the Shrine Board to run the Yatra smoothly and keep the Holy Shivling safe for darshan.
Sahni and Swami Rajeshwaranand Ji have jointly demanded from the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Honorable Manoj Sinha (who is also the Chairman of Shri Amarnath Shrine Board) to fix the accountability of the Shrine Board and return the registration amount collected from the devotees.
Along with this, the decisions of the administration like harassing the local people of Pahalgam and closing the main roads from Nunwan to Ganeshbal in view of security during the Yatra were strongly condemned. Sahni said that due to this the local people are facing a lot of problems in commuting. He said that the cooperation of the local people cannot be forgotten to continue the Yatra smoothly. Special care should be taken to ensure that the local people do not face any problem during the Yatra.