Washim (Maharashtra): Two Jain groups got into a fight on Friday soon after the Shirpur Jain Temple in the Washim district of Maharashtra was opened. Four people including two women were injured during the clash between the two groups outside the temple entrance. The fight started after one group was denied entry in the temple by the other one.
After being closed for 42 years due to a dispute between two sects of Jains, the temple was finally ordered to be opened by the Supreme Court. However, as soon as the temple was opened, the same old controversy came to the fore again, causing the atmosphere around the temple to heat up.
The clash erupted between the Digambar and Shwetambara sects
The dispute over the right to the temple idol had been ongoing for decades, resulting in the temple being closed for over four decades. Despite the Supreme Court's decision to open the temple, tensions rose between the Digambar and Shwetambara sects when the former entered the temple and had darshan, causing protests from the latter stated a report in ABP Maza.
While the temple remained open for five days, the question now arises as to whether it will be closed again due to the coating process. The citizens of the village are calling for a peaceful resolution to the ongoing dispute, with some suggesting that the administration should take over the temple and keep it open for darshan if the two sects cannot come to a resolution through mediation.
Dispute for the temple, idol going on since nearly six decades
Despite the followers of Lord Parswanath, who preached peace and non-violence, his disciples have now fought for their rights for 113 years and yet the same argument has started again. The dispute over whom does the god belong to, has been ongoing since 1910 between the Digambar and Shwetambara sects, with the case being in court for 57 years. The temple was closed again in the 1960s before reopening in 1982, only to be closed again.
Mahant Shidhantsagar Maharaj has demanded that the temple's door remain open, emphasizing that it is wrong to lock the doors of religious institutions such as temples, mosques, and gurdwaras. While the coating process is necessary, he argues that it should be done with the temple remaining open to the public.
