Hindu religious groups rally together, powerful Swaminarayan sect climbs down on murals row

The climbdown by the sect is unusual in a state where it enjoys immense clout. The Hanuman statue from where the murals were removed, for example, was inaugurated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in April

Below Lord Hanuman statue at Sarangpur Hanuman temple after replacing the controversial mural on Tuesday. (Express Photo)

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THE FURORE raised by Hindu religious sects over murals on the pedestal of a Lord Hanuman statue at a temple owned by the Vadtal Swaminarayan sect in Salangpur in Gujarat’s Botad district, and the swift climbdown by the powerful sect, is indicative of the simmering tension between the two groups.

The matter was first raised on August 20 by a devotee belonging to the Ramanandi community, who perform puja at Lord Ram temples, after he noticed the new murals at the pedestal of the Hanuman statue at the temple. He took photos of the “offensive” murals, especially one that appeared to show Hanuman sitting at the feet of Sahajanand Swami, the founder of the 200-year-old Swaminarayan sect.

Also Read | Hanuman Temple controversy: Murals to be removed before sunrise, says Swaminarayan sect

Soon, the matter had been taken up by Hindu religious figures claiming to represent Sanatan Dharma, and well-known preacher Morari Bapu.

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On Monday, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel met a delegation of leaders of the Swaminarayan sect. Hours later, it agreed to remove the murals.

Also Read | Boycott call against Swaminarayan sect amid row over contentious Hanuman murals at Botad temple

The climbdown by the sect is unusual in a state where it enjoys immense clout. The Hanuman statue at the sect temple, for example, was inaugurated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in April.

The matter escalated as RSS leader Ram Madhav dropped in at the temple, and the Congress too joined the issue. Congress workers, one of them dressed as Lord Hanuman, submitted a memorandum to the Rajkot District Collector, with party leader Mahesh Rajput claiming the murals were present when Shah inaugurated the statue.

Also Read | Controversial murals removed: Sanatan Dharma restricts Swaminarayan sect members from occupying posts in its organisations

“One wonders if the Home Minister of India and former home minister of Gujarat saw the murals. Why did he not protest against the murals that insult Lord Hanuman and the Sanatan Dharma?” Rajput asked.

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Barring Union Minister Parsottam Rupala, who termed the controversy “unfortunate”, BJP leaders though shied away from commenting on the issue.

The Swaminarayan sect was founded by Swaminarayan, also known as Ghanshyam, Neelkanthvarni and Sahajanand Swami, after his arrival in Gujarat in 1799 from his native state of Uttar Pradesh. The sect is seen as a strong supporter of the BJP, though it also hosts leaders of the Congress and other parties.

When Pramukhswami, the head of the Bochanvasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan (BAPS) Sanstha, which broke away from Vadtal Swaminarayan, passed away in 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among those who went to Salangpur to pay their last respects.

Also Read | Gujarat’s Vadtal Swaminarayan Temple removes ‘controversial’ murals

The BAPS has also built the Akshardham series of temple complexes, the first such being in Gandhinagar, which was a target of an alleged terror attack in 2002. Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel makes it a point to visit Swaminarayan temples during his tours to various parts of the state.

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This is not the first time the Swaminarayan sect has faced the heat from other Hindu groups. In September 2022, an FIR was lodged in Rajkot by Mihir Shukla, national general secretary of the Brahmadev Samaj, accusing Anandsagar Swami — who was earlier with the Swaminarayan sect’s Haridham Sokhda faction — of allegedly “demeaning Lord Shiva”.

The Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha (HDAS), an organisation of Hindu religious leaders, and VHP finally facilitated a meeting of the leaders of the Vadtal Swaminarayan faction and protesting Hindu leaders in Ahmedabad to resolve the matter.

Also Read | Man vandalises murals depicting Hanuman sitting at Swaminarayan’s feet at temple in Botad district

However, the controversy is refusing to die down even after the sect promised to remove the murals. Hindu religious leaders held a meeting on Tuesday and resolved to restrict Swaminarayan leaders from occupying posts in their organisations, and raised objections to the sect applying different tilaks to idols of Hindu gods and goddesses in order to depict Lord Swaminarayan as a superior deity.

Rakesh Prasad, the incumbent head of Vadtal Swaminarayan faction, tried to buy peace at the meeting by insisting that the Swaminarayan sect is part of the Sanatan Hindu Dharma.

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Swami Parmatmanand Saraswati, the convenor and general secretary of the HDAS, who hosted the truce meeting in Ahmedabad, called the controversy a product of an ecosystem fuelled by social media. He added that people had been hurt on both sides. “When they too profess to be Hindus, mature people should resolve these issues through dialogue… We don’t want our society to be disturbed,” he said.