Improper to question accountability of Ayodhya temple fund collection drive: Pejawar seer
Bengaluru, Feb 27: The Pejawar Math seer Vishwaprasanna Teertha, who is a trustee of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, said on Saturday it was improper for people to question accountability of the temple fund collection when the drive was still underway.
"It is inappropriate to say at this stage when the drive is underway. The process has to complete first," the seer said at the launch of an art installation of the Ram Temple with Lord Ram prepared using coins of Rs 5 and Re 1 of more than Rs 2 lakh.
A Hindu outfit Rashtradharma Organisation set up the installation at Lal Bagh West.
Six Chitrakala Parishath students Raghu Vodeyar, Manjunath, Fayaz, Zilal, Suyash and Puneeth prepared it.
To a question on a few leaders calling the money collection drive a loot, he said loot is when someone steals money donated to temples and not when money is collected for a noble cause of temple construction.
The seer rubbished former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's charge that houses,where money was not donated, were marked in some parts of the state.
"On some occasions when the fund collection team found their receipt books exhausted, where there were people calling them to donate money, their houses were marked as a reminder that the fund has to be collected from there," he said.
Earlier, addressing the gathering at the launch of the art installation, he said Rs 2,100 crore has been collected from across the country for the temple construction at Ayodhya and the collection may touch around Rs 2,500 crore.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two held for 'firing' at BJP leader's house in Bengal
Kolkata (PTI): A day before the counting of votes for the West Bengal assembly elections, two persons were arrested on Sunday for allegedly being involved in a firing incident outside the residence of a BJP leader in North 24 Parganas district, police said.
BJP leader Kundan Singh lodged a police complaint, alleging that a few gunmen fired at his house in the Noapara constituency around Saturday midnight.
Based on the CCTV footage, the two accused were apprehended, a senior officer said.
BJP's Noapara candidate Arjun Singh, in a post on social media, claimed that around 12.05 am, two armed miscreants arrived on a motorcycle at the residence of Kundan Singh, a BJP functionary and secretary of the Barrackpore organisational district, with an "intent to kill him".
According to the BJP leader, the accused are residents of Garulia and are known criminals.
Their names as offenders had been submitted to the Election Commission, he said.
The police officer did not specify whether the two arrested persons were the same individuals named by Arjun Singh.
According to the complaint, one round of firing took place outside Kundan Singh's house, triggering panic in the area.
The BJP candidate also questioned the role of the police, claiming that one of the accused had been detained by the police on the polling day but was later released in the evening.
The Noapara assembly seat went to the polls on April 29.
Several BJP leaders alleged that attempts were being made to create an atmosphere of fear ahead of the counting and weaken the organisation of the opposition parties.
The counting of votes will take place on May 4. Polling for the West Bengal assembly elections was held on April 23 and April 29.
The BJP urged the Election Commission to intervene immediately to ensure peaceful counting.
TMC candidate Somnath Shyam rubbished Arjun Singh’s allegation, claiming that the BJP nominee had orchestrated the firing incident to divert attention from imminent defeat.
“Arjun Singh knows all the gangsters in the Barrackpore belt. Everyone knows about his links with the underworld. Let the police investigate the incident,” Shyam said.
