Mumbai: A first information report (FIR) has been lodged at Gorai police station following the demolition of a centuries-old temple and the felling of a sacred peepal tree at the Vipassana Pagoda in Gorai. The complaint was filed on May 18 by Harish Sutar, a worker of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). The identity of the accused remains unknown as they have not been traced yet.
According to the FIR, a few years ago, an amusement park Essel World had handed over its land to the trustees of the Vipassana Pagoda organisation. On May 14, the Pagoda Sanstha demolished the ancient temple 'Swayambhu Jagartu Devasthanam Shri Vangna Devi Temple' which had been regularly worshipped by approximately 1,000 devotees from the village and surrounding areas.
Trustees had prohibited worship in 2019
Additionally, the trustees of the institute also felled a sacred peepal tree near the temple. According to the complainant, in 2019, the trustees prohibited worship at the site and employed private security guards to prevent devotees from accessing the temple. However, following police intervention, the devotees were allowed to worship on Gurupaurnima day.
Subsequently, a meeting was held involving the police, the trustees of the Vipassana Pagoda, Essel World trustees, and the devotees, wherein it was decided that the temple should never be demolished under any circumstances.
Despite this decision, the temple was demolished without obtaining permission from the government, causing hurt to the sentiments of the Koli community and other Hindu devotees. Consequently, a complaint was filed.
Sutar said, “The trustees submitted a building plan to the BMC that failed to mention the presence of the temple. This callous act has undoubtedly wounded the sentiments of the devotees.”
Assistant General Manager, PR and Operations, Esselworld, Ajit Lotankar, stated, “We have heard that the trustees of the Global Vipassana Pagoda demolished the temple to construct a new building on the site. Although the temple structure was depicted on the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) map, it was not included in the map submitted by the trustees to the BMC.” FPJ attempted to contact the trustees via email but did not any response.
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