Alwar Demolition Row: Cong Has Made Raj 'Like Taliban', Says BJP; Claims Gaushala Destroyed

The political row after demolition of some temples in Rajasthan’s Alwar refuses to subside. After three temples were demolished during an anti-encroachment drive in Alwar district’s Rajgarh, an exchange of barbs was triggered between the Congress and BJP in Rajasthan.

Rajgarh is a BJP-run municipality in Congress-ruled Rajasthan. The priest of one temple and the Brajbhoomi Vikas Parishad had on Friday registered a case against three people, including Rajgarh Congress MLA Johri Lal Meena and the SDM, at the Rajgarh police station, for ‘demolishing the temple in collaboration with the administration.’

But Congress has claimed that the the Rajgarh Municipality, BJP’s board, BJP president and 34 councillors had taken the decision to remove the encroachment.

Here are the latest updates on the row:

• The Rajasthan government has issued a notice to the chairman of the municipality of Rajgarh, Alwar, for demolishing the temple, asking why it did not take permission from the government for this action. Rajasthan Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas claimed that he was not aware of the state government’s role in demolition of the temple. The board of the municipality of Rajgarh took this decision and the it only took permission from the district collector, and assistance from police, he said. The permission was not even sought from the Rajasthan government, he added. A notice was issued regarding this, Khachariyawas said, adding that those who broke the temple will not be spared, and action will be taken against them.
• The BJP delegation has reached the site of the incident. The saffron party leader on visit claimed that a Goshala in the area had also been demolished. It has also demanded a public apology from CM Gehlot, reconstruction of the temple and compensation to the victims. BJP leader Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore said the Congress government in Rajasthan had ‘made the state like Taliban’.
• Meanwhile, the BJP has defended itself, showing a proposal of the BJP Board of Rajgarh issued on 8 February 2022 for the demolition. The proposal mentions to amend the road width master plan from 7 feet to 30 feet to save the roadside shops including the temple. But the Congress government did not pay heed to the plan and went ahead with the demolition, the party said.
• A complaint has also been filed against the SDM and EO Municipality by BJP leader Mahant Prakash Das. He has accused the officials of destroying idols of three temples and hurting religious sentiments.
• The BJP has also said it has spoken to district administration officials to rebuild the temples. “We demanded that all the 3 temples that have been demolished should be redeveloped and the administration has agreed to it. We also demanded to register a case against officials who did this,” said BJP MP Kirodi Meena.
• The saffron party said it had also held an overnight dharna in Alwar but had not heard from the administration yet. “We were on an overnight dharna here in Alwar but we’ve not heard from the Administration yet. Ashok Gehlot deployed a bulldozer to demolish houses and a temple, while he has been condemning bulldozing in other states,” said BJP MP Kirodi Meena.
• Meanwhile, a five-member BJP team will reach the site at 11AM to conduct a fact-finding investigation the matter.
• BSP Supremo Mayawati has also commented on the matter, saying, “even in the Congress Raj of Alwar, Rajasthan, breaking the temple under the guise of encroachment, then damaging the places of other religions and destroying the homes of the poor in the BJP ruled state, etc. This will weaken our constitution. All this should stop immediately.” She was referring to claims of the BJP-run NDMC of demolishing houses of a particular community in the aftermath of the Jahangirpuri violence case.
• Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said the demolition of the ancient temple by Congress government was not correct. “In Goa, we’ll try to reconstruct and restore the temples vandalised by the Portuguese. We will protect the cultural heritage of the state; Rs 20 crore is earmarked for this,” he said.

Read all the Latest India News here