Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand questions need for Ganga Corridor in Haridwar

HARIDWAR: Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand questioned the necessity of the Ganga corridor project in Haridwar on Tuesday. “The Narendra Modi govt is constructing corridors everywhere,” he remarked, calling it “a corridor government.”

Speaking at the Shankaracharya Math in Kankhal, he said, “Initially, people oppose such projects, but eventually they are managed. This is likely what will happen in Haridwar too.” If locals were opposing it, there must be some reason, he said. He, however, did not mention anything specifically wrong with the project.

Speaking about Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s ‘excommunication’ from the Hindu community for his remarks against the Manusmriti, the Shankaracharya said that the comments were unacceptable to seers who gathered at the Dharm Sansad during the Prayagraj Mahakumbh.

Expressing disappointment over the Centre’s delayed response to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22, he said, “The government should respond swiftly and work to liberate Pakistan-occupied Kashmir from Pakistan’s control.”

Alleging that the Modi government had “no love for heritage”, Avimukteshwaranand said he had opposed the Kashi Vishwanath corridor project, but the government turned a deaf ear. “I said if Modi wanted to construct a new thing, he should build a new Kashi instead of destroying the ancient temple of utmost religious and cultural significance,” he said.

Responding to a Uttarakhand govt proposal to call the next Ardh Kumbh in 2027 as Kumbh, he said, “This is against tradition, but the govt does it to get an extra budget for the events.”