Pokhriyal questions 'hurry' in resuming prayer at Kedarnath

Former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank today said by allowing prayer to resume at the Kedarnath shrine without involving common people, the Bahuguna-led government had put an end to the century-old tradition.

"For century the practice has been to decide a date for prayer and unlocking the doors of the shrine to mark the beginning of the pilgrimage. But by leaving people out of the process, the Bahuguna government has put to an end the tradition," Nishank, who walked 24 km from Guptkashi to the Himalayan shrine, told reporters.

"Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna owed an explanation to millions of Hindus in this country for doing this," he said.

The government has been saying that, despite the resumption of the prayer at the shrine, people cannot be allowed to visit it in large number for the safety reason as the roads are in a mess.

"What was the hurry is not clear when the roads are in a mess. They could have taken some more time to repair the roads and simultaneously start prayer and the pilgrimage," he said.

Payers resumed yesterday at the Himalayan shrine, 86 days after ravaging floods left over 400 people dead in the Kedar valley.