Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: In a shocking incident that created a sensation in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, some youths sprinkled gomutra (cow’s urine) in the temple after former state minister Abdul Sattar visited and paid obeisance to Lord Shiva on the Mahashivratri.
The incident occurred at Nageshwar Mahadev Temple in Rahimabad in Sillod Tehsil in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Sunday (15th February).
According to the available details, the Nageshwar Mahadev temple is very popular among the people, and thousands of devotees throng the temple, especially on the Mahashivratri day. The Mahashivratri was on Sunday, and former state minister Abdul Sattar visited and paid obeisance to Lord Shiva in the morning.
After his visit, some youths, reportedly belonging to a right-wing party and self-proclaimed Hindutvavadis, went to the temple and objected to the entry of Sattar into the temple. They claimed that Sattar never leaves his house without consuming non-vegetarian food. Alleging that the state minister ate meat, they declared that his entry had contaminated the temple. “We oppose the entry of such an impious man into the temple,” they claimed.
When asked if every man has the right to enter the temple, the youths said that Sattar is a Muslim and he should accept Hinduism first and then can take the blessing of any Hindu deity, they said.
Reportedly, to maintain the ‘pureness’ of the premises after Sattar’s visit, the youths sprinkled gomutra across the temple. In Hindu ideology, gomutra is considered very pure and auspicious. Spraying it on someone or something is sometimes considered the process of purifying.
At the time of writing this report, no official statement has come from Sattar’s side yet. Abdul Sattar has a strong hold in Sillod tehsil of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district. He was the agriculture minister during the Mahavikas Aghadi government. Initially, he was in Congress but later joined Shiv Sena. After the division of Shiv Sena, he joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
During the recent assembly, municipal council and zilla parishad elections, his stronghold in the tehsil was underlined. The temple incident is being looked at as a shocker due to his immense popularity in the area.
