Latest news with #DepartmentofReligiousAffairs
Indian Express
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
A department fit for the gods — till it isn't. Another UP temple story
The Department of Religious Affairs in Uttar Pradesh has grabbed the spotlight after Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said that temples must be protected from 'administrative corruption' and accused the Yogi Adityanath government of 'indirectly taking control (of them) under the garb of better administration'. Akhilesh's comments came after the Adityanath-led BJP government constituted a trust on Tuesday to manage the administration of the Banke Bihari temple as a part of its plans to redevelop the Banke Bihari corridor between Mathura and Vrindavan. 'Through the excuse of management, the BJP and its associates are gradually taking indirect control of prominent temples. Those who have been traditionally managing these temples for centuries with devotion are being stripped of their rights and are being unfairly accused of being incapable or mismanaging temple affairs,' the SP chief said in a post on X. Officially christened 'Dharmarth Karya Vibhag' and mandated to develop religious institutions and temples, the department came into existence on December 19, 1985, under the Vir Bahadur Singh-led Congress government. According to the website of the Department of Religious Affairs, all temples and religious places of the state fall under it, and its objective is to provide basic facilities like route management, accommodation, lighting, drinking water and food to the visiting devotees. The department was seen as 'defunct' and a hub of 'officials sent on punishment posting' till Akhilesh, during his tenure as CM between 2012 and 2017, 'revived' it with announcements like Rs 50,000 for devotees taking up the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and Rs 10,000 for the Sindhu Darshan Yatra. It has further gained prominence since Adityanath assumed power in 2017, and especially after it tied up with the Tourism Department to promote the BJP government's vision of developing Uttar Pradesh into a hub of 'religious tourism'. In 2018, barely a year after coming to power, Adityanath established the 'Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad', headed by retired IPS officer Shailja Kant Mishra, to develop temples and pilgrimage sites of the region. Under Adityanath's direct supervision, over the past five years, the department has set up six more such 'parishads' for Ayodhya Dham, Vindhyavhal Dham in Mirzapur, Shukarteerath in Muzaffarnagar, Chitrakoot Dham, Devipatan Dham in Gonda district and Naimisharanya Dham in Sitapur. While the other 'parishads' are yet to see the light of day, the Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad is fully operational. The Adityanath government had also increased the assistance for pilgrims undertaking the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and Sindhu Darshan Yatra to Rs 1 lakh and Rs 20,000 respectively. After Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Kashi Vishwanath corridor in Varanasi on February 14, 2022, the Adityanath regime shifted its focus to the Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan. However, the government's move to use temple funds to acquire five acres for a project similar to the Kashi Vishwanath corridor ran into legal trouble after the temple's sevak (priest) approached the Allahabad High Court against it. The court last year passed an order denying permission to the government to use temple funds for the project. The government then moved the Supreme Court against the High Court order. Earlier this month, the top court gave its go-ahead for the project. The government later passed an ordinance to establish the Shri Banke Bihari Ji Mandir Nyas Trust, which was cleared by Governor Anandiben Patel on Tuesday. According to a senior official, the trust will now be responsible for the development, security and administration of the religious site while the 'Goswamis' will continue with their traditional duties of performing rituals. The temple has sought a review of the Supreme Court order. A BJP leader said that the Banke Bihari corridor would be implemented on the lines of the Kashi Vishwanath project. 'People whose lands are acquired will be adequately compensated like it was done during the Kashi Vishwanath corridor. There will be no issues whatsoever,' the leader said on the condition of anonymity. Incidentally, Akhilesh as CM had cleared a similar proposal by the Department of Religious Affairs to manage the Banke Bihari temple as well as the Vindhyavasini temple. The proposal was scrapped after SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav intervened. 'There are seven other temples in Mathura where management issues have been pending for decades and are currently being managed by administrative or judicial officers,' a senior official told The Indian Express.
Gulf Today
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Today
Pakistan shuts seminaries for 10 days fearing Indian military strikes in Azad Kashmir
The government of Azad Kashmir has closed all religious seminaries in the region for 10 days, officials said on Thursday, citing fears they would be targeted by Indian strikes following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir. Islamabad says it has credible intelligence that India intends to launch military action soon, with New Delhi alleging that the attack on tourists was carried out by Pakistani nationals with ties to Islamist organisations based there. The director of Pakistani Kashmir's Department of Religious Affairs, Hafiz Nazir Ahmad, told Reuters that security officials feared Indian forces may target seminaries and label them as militant training centres. The notification seen by Reuters, dated April 30, only cited a heatwave as the reason for the closure. "Right now, we are facing two kinds of heat - one from the weather and the other from (Indian Prime Minister) Modi," Ahmad said of the notification, saying they did not mention the risk of attacks in a bid to avoid panic. India's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. India has previously targeted sites in Pakistan alleging they were bases of militants close to the Kashmir border. "We held a meeting yesterday in which it was unanimously decided not to put innocent children at risk," Ahmad said. The President's Office of Pakistani Kashmir also said the closure was due to "precautionary reasons." There are 445 registered seminaries with over 26,000 students enrolled in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, according to the religious affairs department. The seminaries — locally known as madrasas — are Islamic educational institutions run by religious organisations, providing cheap, often free, alternatives to regular schools. Pakistan has said it will respond "assuredly and decisively" to any military action from India, raising the spectre of war between the two nuclear-armed countries. Reuters
Arab News
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Pakistani Kashmir closes seminaries fearing Indian military strikes
MUZAFFARABAD: The government of Pakistan-administered Kashmir has closed all religious seminaries in the region for 10 days, officials said on Thursday, citing fears they would be targeted by Indian strikes following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir. Islamabad says it has credible intelligence that India intends to launch military action soon, with New Delhi alleging that the attack on tourists was carried out by Pakistani nationals with ties to militant organizations based there. The director of Pakistani Kashmir's Department of Religious Affairs, Hafiz Nazir Ahmad, told Reuters that security officials feared Indian forces may target seminaries and label them as militant training centers. The notification seen by Reuters, dated April 30, only cited a heatwave as the reason for the closure. 'Right now, we are facing two kinds of heat — one from the weather and the other from (Indian Prime Minister) Modi,' Ahmad said of the notification, saying they did not mention the risk of attacks in a bid to avoid panic. India's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. India has previously targeted sites in Pakistan alleging they were bases of militants close to the Kashmir border. 'We held a meeting yesterday in which it was unanimously decided not to put innocent children at risk,' Ahmad said. The President's Office of Pakistani Kashmir also said the closure was due to 'precautionary reasons.' There are 445 registered seminaries with over 26,000 students enrolled in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, according to the religious affairs department. The seminaries — locally known as madrasas — are Islamic educational institutions run by religious organizations, providing cheap, often free, alternatives to regular schools. Pakistan has said it will respond 'assuredly and decisively' to any military action from India, raising the specter of war between the two nuclear-armed countries. Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is claimed in full but ruled in parts by both India and Pakistan, and has been the site of two wars and multiple skirmishes. Many Muslims in Indian Kashmir have long resented what they see as heavy-handed rule by India. In 1989, an insurgency by Muslim separatists began. India poured troops into the region and tens of thousands of people have been killed. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training militants, which Islamabad denies, saying it offers only moral and diplomatic support. Seminaries have been criticized for radicalizing youth toward extremism.
Time of India
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Pakistani occupied Kashmir closes madrasas fearing Indian military strikes
The government of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir has closed all religious seminaries in the region for 10 days, officials said on Thursday, citing fears they would be targeted by Indian strikes following a deadly attack on tourists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam that killed 26. #Pahalgam Terrorist Attack Nuclear Power! How India and Pakistan's arsenals stack up Does America have a plan to capture Pakistan's nuclear weapons? Airspace blockade: India plots a flight path to skip Pakistan Islamabad says it has credible intelligence that India intends to launch military action soon, with New Delhi saying that the attack on tourists was carried out by Pakistani nationals with ties to Islamist organisations based there. The director of POK's Department of Religious Affairs, Hafiz Nazir Ahmad, told Reuters that security officials feared Indian forces may target seminaries and "label them as militant training centres." The President's Office of POK also said the closure was due to "precautionary reasons." There are 445 registered seminaries with over 26,000 students enrolled in POK, according to the religious affairs department. Live Events The seminaries - locally known as madrasas - are Islamic educational institutions run by religious organisations in Pakistan. Pakistan has said it will respond "assuredly and decisively" to any military action from India, raising the spectre of war between the two nuclear-armed countries. (With Reuters inputs)
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pakistani Kashmir closes seminaries fearing Indian military strikes
By Tariq Maqbool MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) - The government of Pakistan-administered Kashmir has closed all religious seminaries in the region for 10 days, officials said on Thursday, citing fears they would be targeted by Indian strikes following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir. Islamabad says it has credible intelligence that India intends to launch military action soon, with New Delhi alleging that the attack on tourists was carried out by Pakistani nationals with ties to Islamist organisations based there. The director of Pakistani Kashmir's Department of Religious Affairs, Hafiz Nazir Ahmad, told Reuters that security officials feared Indian forces may target seminaries and label them as militant training centres. The notification seen by Reuters, dated April 30, only cited a heatwave as the reason for the closure. "Right now, we are facing two kinds of heat — one from the weather and the other from (Indian Prime Minister) Modi," Ahmad said of the notification, saying they did not mention the risk of attacks in a bid to avoid panic. India's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. India has previously targeted sites in Pakistan alleging they were bases of Islamist militants close to the Kashmir border. "We held a meeting yesterday in which it was unanimously decided not to put innocent children at risk," Ahmad said. The President's Office of Pakistani Kashmir also said the closure was due to "precautionary reasons." There are 445 registered seminaries with over 26,000 students enrolled in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, according to the religious affairs department. The seminaries - locally known as madrasas - are Islamic educational institutions run by religious organisations, providing cheap, often free, alternatives to regular schools. Pakistan has said it will respond "assuredly and decisively" to any military action from India, raising the spectre of war between the two nuclear-armed countries. Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is claimed in full, but ruled in parts by both India and Pakistan, and has been the site of two wars and multiple skirmishes. Many Muslims in Indian Kashmir have long resented what they see as heavy-handed rule by India. In 1989, an insurgency by Muslim separatists began. India poured troops into the region and tens of thousands of people have been killed. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training militants, which Islamabad denies, saying it offers only moral and diplomatic support. Seminaries have been criticised for radicalising youth towards Islamist extremism. (Reporting Tariq Maqbool in Muzaffarabad; Additional reporting by Charlotte Greenfield in Islamabad and Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Writing by Gibran Peshimam; Editing by Ros Russell)
