Dehradun, Nov 8: The presence of BJP leaders in the temple premises with their shoes on during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's live telecast of prayers have kicked up a controversy as Congress accuse the saffron party of breaking the traditions.
The BJP leaders were seen wearing their shoes on in the Kedarnath temple complex on November 5. Congress general secretary Harish Rawat raised his objection to this on Twitter.
"All devotees are equal in the eyes of Lord Shiva. How can people be stopped now from entering the sanctum sanctorum of the temple with their cameras or mobile phones and recording things inside it. Gradually, people will break other traditions as well," Rawat tweeted.
On the other hand, a clip of state Congress president Ganesh Godiyal talking to a TV journalist inside the Kedarnath temple following the 2013 disaster has put the party in an embarrassing situation.
In a quick reaction to this, Godiyal tweeted all BJP leaders were wearing their shoes in the temple premises during the prime minister's programme on November 5, whereas he went inside the temple wearing his shoes at the time of the disaster when it was cluttered with thousands of dead bodies.
Godiyal defends himself by claiming that the two instances cannot be equated as they happened in different circumstances. Harish Rawat backed Godiyal's argument and tweeted, stating pulling the bodies out of the sanctum sanctorum of the temple after the 2013 deluge was the first and foremost priority. PTI