A senior priest alleges that gold plating of the Kedarnath sanctum sanctorum walls has turned brass

Friday, 16 June 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN

 Controversy has erupted over the gold layers on the walls of the sanctum sanctorum of the revered Kedarnath shrine having become brass. Raising this allegation, a senior pilgrimage priest Acharya Santosh Trivedi demanded a thorough probe into the matter. The video on the matter has turned viral, circulating in the social media.  The priest further alleged that it involves a scam of Rs 1.25 million and in case no probe is ordered he would launch a movement.

 However, the Badri-Kedar Temple Committee (BKTC) brushed off the charge and said that the video is meant to mislead people.  Commenting on this allegation, the BKTC chief executive officer Yogendra Singh said that the video is hurting the sentiments of the devotees. He claimed that the walls of the sanctum sanctorum of the shrine had been plated with gold last year with the donation made by a person from Mumbai.  He further said that the work had been completed during the three-day consecration ceremony of the newly built Isaneshwar temple within the Kedarnath temple complex. This temple was completely damaged by the 2013 disaster. With the ritualistic consecration of the newly built temple, the tradition of doing puja at the Isaneshwar temple before the puja at Kedarnath temple was revived.