After the recent incident where a Muslim boy was slapped by a man after he was found inside the Dasna temple, the Muslims in the region had expressed their displeasure over the incident, stating that their ancestors had helped in the construction of the temple. However, this assertion was summarily rejected by the head priest of the Dasna Temple Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, who said that the ancestors of the Muslims might have helped in the construction of the temple when they were Hindus 200 years ago.
Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati also claimed that he has all the records of the donations made to date and none of them was from the local Muslim population.
“The ancestor of the local Muslims were Hindus and they might have contributed to the construction of the temple 200 years back, nobody has a record of that. I have details of each donation made to this temple and I can guarantee that none of them was from the local Muslim population,” said Narsinghanand.
The head priest of the Dasna Devi Temple also said that most parts of the temple was constructed by him.
When asked about the new board that prevents Muslims from entering the temple premises, Narsinghanand unflinchingly said, “This board will stay forever. Nobody who has faith in Hinduism will be barred from entering the temple, only those who have nothing to do with the religious activities are banned.”
However, Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati’s statements have not gone down well with the local Muslim community members, many of whom have accused him of sowing discord between Hindus and Muslims of the region.
One of the village residents as quoted by India Today said, “Our forefathers had also helped in the construction of the temple, though we don’t have any records of it. The mahant of the temple is making unnecessary hateful statements. We live in peace in this locality.”
Another one said, “The Muslim youth was there to drink water and that’s why he was slapped. All allegations against him made by the temple priest are false. Nobody wants to deface the temple.”
However, if the priests of the temple are to be believed, the temple was suffering from the menace of Muslim goons who would harass Hindu women, steal valuables and desecrate idols of Hindu Gods.
Muslim youth beaten up by a man after he was found inside the temple compound
A few days back, a video of a man beating a Muslim boy inside the temple compound had gone viral on the internet. The video was widely circulated on social media, following which the police had arrested the man who was seen beating the Muslim youth.
The left-liberal media created a fuss over the incident, trying to turn the issue into a matter of hate crime against the Muslims. However, they saw a fierce pushback from the priests of the temple, many of whom came forward in the defence of the man who was arrested by the police. The priests also recounted how members of other community in the region have been caught stealing valuables, desecrating the idols and harassing the Hindu women inside the temple compound.
According to one of the priests of the temple, the Muslim boy was not beaten up inside the temple compound for drinking water. He was inside the temple premises for stealing something and harassing the Hindu women, he said.
Muslim goons targeted Hindu female devotees inside the temple compound: Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati
In an interview with The Quint days after the incident, Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati pointed out that the Muslim population in the area is around 95% while Hindus comprise only 5% of the population. He said that the Hindu temple, where the incident took place, is frequented by several female devotees from nearby villages who are often targeted by Muslim goons. He added that whenever a complaint was lodged against the harassment meted out to the female devotees, the Muslim society would come out in support of the accused.
The mahant emphasised that incidents of theft, assault and sexual harassment of female devotees went on to such an extent that the temple management was forced to bar the entry of Muslims in the temple premises.