Rift in UttaRakhand oveR goats
A feud has erupted between two Uttarakhand Cabinet ministers over the validity of chanting Vedic mantras during the mating exercise of goats. The two-day event called Swamvara is slated to take place in a village in Nain Bag (Dhanolti), near Mussoorie, on 23 February. It is being organised by a local NGO in association with the Department of Animal Husbandry. The bickering involves Minister for Animal Husbandry, Rekha Arya and Minister for Tourism and spiritual leader Satpal Singh Rawat, commonly known as Satpal Maharaj. A similar event last year had yielded a good response. Encouraged, the Uttarakhand Sheep and Wool Development Board (under animal husbandry) plans to support it again with the NGO Green Peace this month.Arya on Monday decided to brief the press about the coming event, but cancelled the meet twice. Curious, journalists began snooping around. It was discovered that Satpal Maharaj was upset as he came to know that the Vedic mantras would be chanted during the event, as was done last year without applying mind about time and place. Maharaj told The Sunday Guardian that “The mantras should not be chanted anywhere and at any place. In Sanatan Dharma, there is a special place and time for chanting the mantras.” In 2017, a local entrepreneur had cashed in on the innocuous breeding exercise initiated for goats by terming it Swamvara.
The goats were dressed with flowers and the Swamvara was organised with the chanting of Vedic mantras. The event was a success, with curios tourists coming to watch it. Roped in, the Sheep Development Board had even showcased ways to improve the breed of goats and educated the farmers about keeping goats disease free.This made Satpal Maharaj angry as he felt that Vedic mantras were misused for some commercial activity. Rekha Arya reiterated that the board was associated with the local NGO only in terms of encouraging goat rearing and ensuring that the villagers were given information on the matter.
“It is swam ka var for the goats. Our job is to showcase good breeds of goats, improve livestock and set up check up camps for the goats and sheep,” she pointed out. She is keen to host the Swamvara this time again. While the board is going ahead with the preparations, the Minister for Urban Development Madan Kaushik has declared that the Swamvara would go on without the chanting of mantras. “Vedic chanting is part of Sanatan Dharma and, I agree, these should not be misused.”
Born in Kankhal in Haridwar, Maharaj is the son of spiritual master Yogiraj Paramsant Shri Hansji Maharaj. He is a National Executive member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was also a member of the Lok Sabha as a Congress leader. He joined the BJP on 21 March 2014.