Samajwadi Party Leader Swami Prasad Maurya Claims ‘Badrinath Was A Buddhist Monastery,’ Sparks Row Yet Again

Dehradun: Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya has sparked yet another controversy by saying that the famous Badrinath temple in Garhwal Himalayas was “originally a Buddhist monastery.” Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has termed Maurya’s comments "unfortunate."

Dhami said Maurya's comment reflects the "anti-national and anti-religious" thinking of the Congress and its allies. "The comment made by the Samajwadi Party leader on Bhu Baikunth (heaven on earth) Shri Badrinath Dham, the centre of faith of crores of devotees, is unfortunate," Dhami said, reacting to Maurya's tweet that Badrinath was a Buddhist monastery until the eighth century.

Dhami said the statement by a leader of the Samajwadi Party, which is a member of the "Mahathagbandhan (alliance of thugs)", shows the anti-national and anti-religious thinking of the Congress and its allies. "This view also reveals the dominance of the ideology of SIMI and PFI within these parties," he said.

Uttarakhand Minister for Culture and Religious Affairs Satpal Maharaj said Maurya's comment on Badrinath shows his lack of knowledge of the 'Sanatan Dharma' and that he only wants to be in the news by making misleading statements.

Maharaj, who is also a religious preacher with followers across the country, said 'Nar-Narayan' (lord Vishnu) had done penance in Badrinath Dham.

"Mahatma Buddha was not even born then. That's why it is completely wrong to describe Badrinath Dham as a Buddhist monastery. Maurya should also know that when there used to be trade in Uttarakhand from Niti Valley in the past, offerings for Lord Badrinath used to come from the monasteries of Tibet," he said.

The sharp reaction by politicians and several social media users to his tweet did not deter Maurya from tweeting again on the matter on Friday. "Akhir mirchi lagi na, (it hurts you finally, doesn't it) now they are reminded of their religion. Isn't the faith of others also faith," Maurya said.

The SP leader said that it was in order not to hurt the religious sentiments of any section that he had said the status of all centres of faith as it was on the 15th of August 1947 should be accepted to avoid any dispute.

"Or else we should be ready to accept a historical truth. Till the eighth century, Badrinath was a Buddhist monastery. It was made a centre of Hindu pilgrimage after that, this is the truth," he tweeted in Hindi.