Somnath temple to restrict entry of non-Hindus

Located on Saurashtra coast of the Arabian Sea, Somnath temple enshrines the first of 12 jyoritlings of Lord Shiva in the country and is considered sacred by Hindus.

Non-Hindus will have to seek prior permission before entering the world-famous Somnath temple near Veraval town in coastal Gir Somnath district of Gujarat as the temple administration has decided to regulate the flow of non-Hindu visitors.

Shree Somnath Trust (SST), a religious trust which manages the temple, put up three public notices at the main entrance and Digvijay Dwar on Monday. The notices ask non-Hindus to seek permission of the trust before entering the main temple. “Shree Somnath Jyotirling is a religious place of Hindus. Non-Hindus will be allowed entry for darshan in this pious religious place of worship only after they contact the office of the general manager and get his due permission,” reads the notice written in Gujarati.

Located on Saurashtra coast of the Arabian Sea, Somnath temple enshrines the first of 12 jyoritlings of Lord Shiva in the country and is considered sacred by Hindus. In the mediaeval era, the temple was a great place of worship and wealth. It was also considered a symbol of pride of the Hindus. But due to its wealth, foreign invaders attacked it six times and plundered its wealth. After Independence, the temple was rebuilt with Sardar Vallabhabhai Patel, then Union Home Minister and Rajendra Prasad, then president of India playing leading roles.

SST has eight trustees, four of whom are nominated by Gujarat government while the remaining four being nominees of the Central government. Former Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel is incumbent chairman of the trust while Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, veteran BJP leader LK Advani and retired chief secretary of Gujarat, Pravin Laheri are its trustees. Harshvardhan Neotia, chairman of Ambuja Realty Group, Rajen Kilachand, chairman of UAE-based industry house Dodsal Group and JD Parmar, a retired college principal are other trustees of the SST.

However, SST said on Wednesday that they were merely following rules of the temple. “We had received several complaints through letters and emails from Hindu pilgrims about the presence of non-Hindus on the temple premises. Security personnel also used to remain in a dilemma about the presence of non-Hindus. As Hindus, we have right to manage and maintain our religious places. It is like if you go to certain religious places, you have to cover your head. Also, there is a clause in our trust deed to regulate the entry of non-Hindus. We are merely following it more rigorously now,” Laheri, who is also secretary of SKT, told The Indian Express.

Laheri added that there was nothing new in the notice boards. “Through these notices, we have merely clarified the position. Security personnel keep on changing, therefore, all of them will not be aware of the rules. But now they will know that this is the rule. Therefore, those who come for non-religious purpose will have to seek permission,” he said.

The secretary further said that permission will be granted on the spot if the trust finds the reason of visit genuine. “To get a permission, a non-Hindu visitor will have to give his name and address and we will maintain a record. Earlier, we did not use to maintain such records,” said Laheri.