The controversy over Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s claim that namaz was once offered on the steps of Hanumangarhi temple in Ayodhya intensified on Friday, with Jyotirmath Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav rejecting the statement and demanding proof.
The row began after Adityanath, while addressing a gathering in Ayodhya on July 10, alleged that namaz had been offered on the steps of Hanumangarhi during the Samajwadi Party’s tenure. He made the remarks while responding to Opposition criticism over the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple.
Shankaracharya Demands Proof
Speaking to reporters in Gonda, Swami Avimukteshwaranand challenged the chief minister to substantiate his claim.
“Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should prove when namaz was ever offered on the steps of Hanumangarhi. If he cannot prove it, he should resign,” the Shankaracharya said.
He accused the chief minister of making false statements on the sacred land of Ayodhya.
“The chief minister should be ashamed. He is speaking lies on the sacred land of Ayodhya,” he said.
The seer also said that if the allegation was not proved, he would urge the mahants of Hanumangarhi to bar Adityanath from entering the temple. He added that if this did not happen, he would stop visiting the temple himself.
Brij Bhushan Contradicts CM
Former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh also rejected the chief minister’s assertion, saying there was no truth in the claim.
“No, namaz was never offered there. That claim is wrong,” Singh told reporters.
He declined to comment on the Shankaracharya’s demand to bar Adityanath from the temple but reiterated that the claim was “factually incorrect.”
Singh also claimed that Hanumangarhi had been constructed by a Muslim man and said some of the stones installed by him were still part of the temple structure, though he said he could not recall the person’s name.
On the Ram Temple donation controversy, however, Singh defended the BJP leadership, saying, “The Prime Minister has nothing to do with this matter, nor does Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.”
Akhilesh Yadav Alleges Diversion
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP of raising the Hanumangarhi issue to divert attention from the alleged donation scam at the Ram Temple.Sharing a video of Hanumangarhi Mahant Anand Das, who reportedly disputed the chief minister’s claim, Yadav alleged that the BJP was spreading “false propaganda.”
“The BJP’s irreligious politics of theft, loot, deceit, fraud, lies and treachery has now moved beyond Lord Ram’s temple to Hanumangarhi. Those spreading false propaganda about Hanumangarhi should admit that they are doing so to divert attention from the theft in the Ram Temple,” he said.
He added that those making such claims should “climb the steps of Hanumangarhi on their knees and seek forgiveness” from the temple.Yadav also extended full support to the Shankaracharya’s remarks.
“We support the revered Shankaracharya’s statement 100 per cent. The irreligious BJP leaders and their associates first looted and ruined Ayodhya, and are now defaming it by spreading lies,” he said.
Ram Temple Donation Row in Background
The controversy comes against the backdrop of an alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The case has led to the arrest of eight persons, the resignation of two trust functionaries and an ongoing Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe.
The Hanumangarhi dispute has further intensified the political confrontation, with Opposition parties and some religious leaders alleging that the issue is being used to shift public attention away from the Ram Temple donation case.
