Kolhapur :The chemical conservation of the deteriorating Mahalaxmi idol which was scheduled to start on Thursday has been put on hold due to opposition by HJS.
The move apparently comes after the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) received a letter from a right-wing organization, HinduJanjagruti Samiti (HJS), opposing the chemical conservation and opposing it on “religious, spiritual” grounds.
The letter sent by the Kolhapur branch of the HJS was also mailed to the Prime Minister and the ASI director-general. TOI has a copy of the which has been signed by Madhukar Nazare of the organization. Incidentally, HJS members had been questioned over the 2009 bomb blast in Madgaon, Goa.
ASI’s superintending archaeological chemist M R Singh told TOI that he was supposed to leave for Kolhapur from Aurangabad with two colleagues for the conservation work. However, he was told in the afternoon by his seniors not to go, he said.
Sources close to the developments in the ASI, Aurangabad unit, said, “A letter from Madhukar Nazare, addressed to the PM and the ASI director-general in New Delhi, prompted the change in plans. The letter lists several points to support the HJS stand. We will now have to wait for further instructions.”
Source : TOI