108 mazars demolished, CM’s bulldozer moving around: Gujarat home minister

Gujarat home minister Harsh Sanghavi on Wednesday informed the Assembly that the Bhupendra Patel-led government has demolished 108 mazars in the crackdown on encroachments that have come up as “part of a conspiracy”. Sanghavi also reassured the public that the government is vigilant in protecting temples from any malicious intent.

Referring to an earlier speech by a BJP MLA from Ellisbridge, Sanghavi said, “Today, the point mentioned by Amitbhai… He said that a derasar was removed in Jamalpur. Now, Dada’s (Bhupendra Patel) bulldozer is moving around in every nook and corner of the state so that no temple or devsthan can be removed while hatching a conspiracy. Nobody knows where will it (bulldozer) go.”

Sanghavi was speaking in the Assembly while seeking the House approval for budgetary allocation for the home department.

He raised questions regarding the sudden appearance of multiple mazars within the Uparkot Fort premises in Junagadh, which was recently redeveloped.

“In Uparkot, it was not known where (and when) all mazars were built. How can it be built suddenly?”

Sanghavi added, “In all, 108 mazars have been demolished (in the state) and the state’s properties have been opened… The encroachment around Somnath has been removed. This bulldozer of Dada can enter a 20-ft wide street and an 80-m wide road.”

The minister also addressed criticism surrounding the extension of Navratri festivities into late-night hours. He lamented opposition to the late-night garba performances, citing a recent PIL filed in the high court, and defended the cultural practices integral to the state’s identity.

“Navratri was allowed (to be celebrated) the whole night so that the people of Gujarat could worship the goddess and play raas throughout the night. Considering the Supreme Court and (Gujarat) high court and its fear, we definitely got the sound (of music) decreased.”

“But because Navratri could be allowed till late night, it brought Diwali to numerous households. To get a figure of that (how many households), one needs to ask the poor, the vendors and those running small restaurants,” he added.

“I made a statement (then) that if the people of my state cannot perform garba then would they do so in Pakistan? The very next day of this statement, people from a party (moved) a PIL in the HC. They have a problem if people of the state perform garba till late in the night. Can’t people perform garba till late? We had to face that situation,” the minister said.