‘No VIPs Before God,’ Bageshwar Dham's Dhirendra Shastri Blames VIP Darshan For Ujjain & Bihar Stampede, Urges Temples To End Special Entry System | VIDEO

Chhatarpur (Madhya Pradesh): Bageshwar Dham's Dhirendra Krishna Shastri has urged temple administrations and governments to end VIP entry systems at major religious places, saying all devotees are equal before God.

He expressed grief over the recent incident of stampede-like situation at the Nagchandreshwar Temple in Ujjain where several devotees were injured, and a complete stampede at temple in Lakhisarai, Bihar-- where 14 people died.

Calling both incidents heartbreaking, Shastri said such incidents at religious places affect not only devotees but society as a whole.

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During his one-day visit to Ankleshwar in Gujarat, Shastri also raised concerns over the VIP entry system at major temples and religious places. He said all devotees are equal before God and VIP darshan and special entry should be stopped.

‘VIP System Troubles Common Devotees’

Shastri said the VIP system forces common devotees to wait in long queues for hours, while some people get special entry. He said this can create dissatisfaction among devotees and also put pressure on temple arrangements.

He said overcrowding and poor crowd management can lead to situations similar to stampedes.

Shastri appealed to temple administrations and governments to introduce strong, clear and modern safety arrangements at major religious places.

He said the safety of common devotees, many of whom travel from faraway places for darshan, should be the top priority.

Calls For One Queue System

Shastri stressed that all devotees should have an equal and properly managed queue system at temples.

He said removing separate arrangements for VIPs and common devotees and introducing better crowd management can help prevent such incidents at religious places.