Don’t want such deadly religiosity…

36 people died in the Beleshwar Jhulelal temple of Indore on Ram Navami, while a girl child died of suffocation in the event of Bageshwar Dham in Patan and three people died in the event of Kubereshwar Dham in Sihor on Mahashivratri. This series of continuous deaths is telling us that in the last few years, our society is paying a huge price for the growing religiosity across the country. Perhaps we all are realizing now that suddenly the crowd has started increasing in the temples around us. The number of people coming to offer water to deserted temples has increased on Monday morning. On Tuesdays and Saturdays, continuous recitation of Hanuman Chalisa for several hours has started at the Hanuman temple in your locality. Long processions on Ram Navami. Chunari Yatras going out on Navratri. Shiv Baraat travels on the streets on Mahashivratri. 

The stories and their huge pandals that happen every few days in the city. The huge processions of the storytellers and their respect more than the hermit ascetic. Tolerating the huge crowd in the temples in the name of Dham built at different places and the disturbances there in the name of religion. Telling that my country is changing and becoming more religious.  

This growing religiosity is also at the root of the Indore accident. When the people of Patel Nagar and Sneh Nagar thronged to perform Havan in front of the Durga idol in the very small Shankare temple of Sarvodaya Nagar of the city on the Navami day of Navratri, without knowing the small place where they are sitting, they are performing the Havan. . There he will have to sacrifice his life. Actually, there was a small Mahadev temple on the land in front of the Patel Nagar park, which was run by Shri Beleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal Mandir Trust. Adjacent to the temple was a step well which was used to water the plants of the park. But Tust had an eye on the stepwell and as soon as the water of this stepwell decreased in a few years, it was covered with cement on an iron girder and given the name of renovation of the temple. 

Now this temple has become Durga temple along with Shiv temple. After covering the stepwell, idols of gods and goddesses were placed on its three sides. The matter did not stop at this. Within a few years, another big temple near this temple also started building a trust, now when the local residents opposed it, the municipal corporation sent notices to the trust, but these notices proved to be ineffective as the leaders associated with the trust increased in the BJP. First a small temple was built on the land of the park, then the corporator’s office was attached to it, while a big temple and fencing around the temple was also put up and the big land was taken into possession. Since all this was happening on the land of the park, the protest was mild. 

In response to the notice of the Municipal Corporation, the trust said that this temple is hundred years old before the park and which is being renovated by the public. Tust also claimed that efforts are being made to provide clean water to the public by better maintaining the stepwell adjacent to the temple. Action will be taken soon to open this stepwell which is closed. It was told that on this Navratri, the management associated with the temple said that the idols of the temple will be kept in the newly constructed temple in the coming days, so this time the havan worship should be grand.

On the day of Navami, Havan was organized in front of the idol of Maa Durga on the same concrete roof under which the stepwell was buried. The crowd of devotees of Patel Nagar Sarvodaya Nagar Sneh Nagar increased to participate in the Havan and the old roof made of iron girders collapsed at 11.15 am. What was there then, there was chaos in this small temple. No one knows how many people have fallen and how to get them out. There were stairs adjacent to the wall of Bawdi, some tried to get down from it, but they were also breaking. First the police and then when the people of the rescue team of the Municipal Corporation came, no one even knew that how deep the well of this stepwell would be, whether it was full of water or mud. Small ropes and ladders did not work. In the beginning, some people who fell above were taken out, then the government was informed till Bhopal that all are safe, 18 people have been taken out and more will be taken out soon, but what is this, when the dead bodies started coming out after the living people came out. Didn’t take the name of the end. 

When the efforts of the Municipal Corporation were found insufficient in the 60 feet deep dark narrow step well, the army was called from Mhow near Indore and the count of dead bodies which was stuck at 10 to 15 reached 35 in the morning. At around 11.15 am, the last body of Sunil Solanki, who had taken part in the rescue operation, came out. Victims of the accident, in front of this temple, when 12 dead bodies were found from six houses in the street of Patel Nagar, then even stone hearted people started sweating. All these people belonged to the Gujarati community who opposed the temple and encroachment. To which  the people of the trust had written a letter to the Municipal Corporation on April 25 that if the restoration of the ancient temple was opposed, hysteria would spread.

Today there is no hysteria or mourning in the streets around the temple. When Congress leader Kamal Nath went to this area on Saturday, the women said that bulldozers should run on this temple, when the bell of this temple rings, our sorrow will increase. What kind of society do we want to create by building such temples by forcibly occupying government land and ignoring the protests of the local people. After the painful incident of Indore, it will have to be seriously thought about.

Note- The views expressed above are the personal views of the author. It is not necessary that ABP News Group agrees with it. The author is solely responsible for all claims and objections related to this article.

Get the more latest India news updates

Scroll to Top