Devsthanam board: Priests to intensify stir from August 17
The controversy over the Devasthanam Board is becoming a big issue in Uttarakhand. The efforts made by the new CM Pushkar Singh Dhami to persuade the priests in the past, seem to be failing because besides the temple committees and priests associated with the Char Dham, 47 other temples have warned of protest at the state level. With the demand to dissolve the Devasthanam Board created in 2019, it has been said to start this demonstration from August 17.
The pilgrimage priests of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri had been protesting for the past several weeks against the formation of the Devasthanam Board. Now they have announced to stage a sit-in in Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand, including district headquarters. Not only this, these priests are going to open a front against those public representatives who gave their opinion in favor of the board.
Why is the priestly community indulging in protest?
It is worth noting that the protest of the priests of Kedarnath pilgrimage, who are sitting on a continuous protest demanding the dissolution of the board, is completing 59 days on Wednesday. On the other hand, recently the BJP also claimed to have made some local priests etc. members of the party. During the time of Trivendra Singh Rawat’s government in Uttarakhand, administration, management was entrusted to the board under the Devasthanam Board Act in 2019, which the priests have been opposing since then.
