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SC outfit takes control of UP Hanuman temple

Last Updated 05 December 2018, 05:30 IST

Days after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remarks terming Lord Hanuman a "Dalit", members of a Scheduled Caste (SC) outfit took control of a Hanuman temple in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar town, about 500 kilometres from here, on Tuesday.

According to reports, dozens of members of Valmiki Kranti Dal (VKD), an SC outfit, entered the famous Hanuman temple in Chowk area in the town, forcibly removed the priest and took the control.

Devotees of Lord Hanuman consider Tuesday to be an auspicious day for paying obeisance to the deity.

Sources said that VKD president Deepak Gambhir occupied the seat of the chief priest at the temple and started distributing 'prasad' (sweet offered on the deity) among the devotees.

"This temple belongs to us...since our chief minister has said that Hanumanji was a Dalit...we should be given control of all Hanuman temples in the state," Gambhir said.

Also read: Lord Hanuman was slave of ' manuwadi ' people: BJP MP

As the incident sparked tension in the area, the police intervened and drove out VKD members from the temple after a few hours.

The incident comes close on the heels of the storming of an ancient Hanuman temple in the state capital by members of the SC demanding that the management appointed SC priests there and also claimed ownership of the temple.

Earlier hundreds of members of the community had stormed an ancient Hanuman temple in Agra and claimed its ownership. The management of the temple had a tough time in persuading them to call off their demonstration.

Adityanath had while addressing an election rally at Alwar in Rajasthan, said that Lord Hanuman belonged to "Dalit" community.

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(Published 04 December 2018, 18:44 IST)

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