The Bharatiya Janata Party hit out at the Congress government in Rajasthan over the demolition of a 300-year-old Hindu temple in the Alwar district. As many as three temples in Alwar were reportedly bulldozed recently to “remove encroachments”. As per reports, a JCB was brought in to destroy the temple’s roof and pillars. Idols of the temple have been damaged in the demolition drive. The Shivalingam inside the temple was also uprooted by using drills.
As per the report, a video by local MLA Jauhari Lal Meena has gone viral on social media where he is heard saying a Congress municipality could have prevented the demolition drive. In a tweet, the BJP has stated that the temple demolition in Alwar’s Rajgarh was the Gehlot government’s ‘revenge’ for the demolition drive in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri. Taking to Twitter, BJP leader Amit Malviya accused the Rajasthan government of hurting the sentiments of Hindus by demolishing the old temple under the pretext of development. “300 years old Shiva temple was demolished in the name of development in Alwar, Rajasthan,” he tweeted in Hindi. “Shedding tears on Karauli and Jahangirpuri and hurting the faith of Hindus – this is the secularism of Congress,” he added.
Officials said that this was done as a part of the city’s development plan. But the matter is getting worse with the growing controversies. The issue is far from settling down. In the road widening drive, reports state that 85 Hindu houses have been demolished. Many shops that had been allotted by the government itself, decades ago, had been demolished without giving notice to the owners. The local authorities and local MLA have all refused to comment on the issue. Few days back, CM Gehlot had announced that the government cannot demolish houses and shops without notice. So far, in a drive that started on 17 April, over 150 houses and shops, including old temples have been demolished so far, a report stated.
The priest of the temple and the Brajbhoomi Vikas Parishad have 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”. The complaint alleges that the temple was bulldozed but that its dome was demolished and the ‘Shivling’ was destroyed with a cutter on April 17.
