JAMMU/KASHMIR, September 12, 2020 : A year after the effective abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A and the administrative reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir, the government has decided to restore the lost glory of the centuries-old heritage shrine — Raghunath Temple situated near Fateh Kadal in the heart of Srinagar city, reported the Hindi daily, Jagran. The renovation work of the temple has been entrusted to the State Tourism Department. Along with the temple, the ghats of river Jhelum will also be beautified. This long-pending decision has lifted the mood of the Kashmiri Hindus in the valley who have remained devoid and oppressed for years due to adverse circumstances, created by radical Islamists, which also compelled many Hindu families to migrate from Kashmir.
The historic temple which was one of the most revered by Hindus was vandalized and burnt down by Islamic terrorists in the early 1990s — the time when the valley witnessed mass genocide and exodus of Kashmiri Hindus at the hands of the blood-thirsty Islamic terrorists who were ready to do anything to convert Kashmir into an Islamic state. Raghunath Temple which is dedicated to Lord Ram is one of the most revered temples in the valley. The temple was constructed by Maharaja Gulab Singh who was the founder of the kingdom of Jammu & Kashmir and the work on the temple began in the year 1835. After his death, the work was completed by Maharaja Gulab Singh’s son, Maharaja Ranbir Singh in 1860. The main temple’s inner wall was covered with gold sheet on the three sides of the temple.