Demolition of Mangu Mutt- SGPC to send delegation to Odisha
KS Diwan/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Saturday has decided to send its delegation to Odisha to assess first hand information about the demolition of the Mangu Mutt associated with Guru Nanak” said Gobind Singh Longowal, President SGPC.
He further said that the next course of action will be taken once the delegation gives its report.
Set up in 1615 by Bhai Almast, a Sikh preacher and head of Dhuari of the Udasi Sect, the Mangu Mutt was also visited by Guru Teg Bahadur in 1670. Further, the eldest son of Guru Hargobind, Baba Gurditta, had chosen Bhai Almast to disseminate Guru Nanak’s message. The Mutt was built in the 17th century by a famous saint of Udasin sect of Sikh faith and an ardent disciple of Guru Nanak, Mangu Das.
Earlier Punjab Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday wrote to his Odisha counterpart Naveen Patnaik urging him to retract his government’s decision to demolish the Mangu Mutt associated with Guru Nanak.
Capt Amarinder has termed as unfortunate the move to demolish the mutt, which had age-old significance for the Sikh community, as Guru Nanak had visited the holy temple to spread his universal message of the oneness of God.
It was shocking that while the whole world was getting ready to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary of the first Sikh Guru, the historically important mutt, a symbol of the connection between Sikhism and the Jagannath Temple, was sought to be demolished by the Odisha government, said Amarinder.
Media reports suggest the Odisha government had decided to demolish the historically significant mutt to make way for a heritage corridor within 75 metres of “Meghanad Prachir” of the Jagannath Temple. The Mutt is located in front of Simhadwar of the 12th-century shrine at the entrance of Dolamandap Sahi, one of the busiest roads of the town. The two-storied building, constructed with mortar and limestone powder over 100 years back,
