Nepal’s Pashupatinath Temple closed as authorities reinstall gold ornaments

By Press Trust of India: Nepal’s Pashupatinath Temple was closed on Wednesday afternoon until Thursday morning as authorities reinstalled greater than 100 kilogrammes of gold ornaments across the Shiva Linga on the fifth-century revered Hindu shrine.

The gold ornaments have been eliminated after Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” directed the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to probe the jewelry following stories that greater than 10 kilograms of gold have been lacking from the ornaments put in on Maha Shivratri pageant final yr.

The Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) reinstalled the ornaments after they have been taken out from the principle temple for the aim of weighing and figuring out their high quality.

All 4 gates, together with the temple’s primary gate, have been closed and safety personnel have been deployed on the temple premises, who didn’t enable devotees inside, saying that the set up work was underway.

The temple will stay closed for the entire night time and is more likely to reopen for devotees early on Thursday morning round 3 am after a particular puja.

Meanwhile, the previous treasurer of the PADT informed PTI that through the investigation 500 grams of gold was discovered lacking from the ornaments.

It is claimed that 500 grams much less gold was used whereas putting in the Jalahari, the gold decoration across the Shiva Linga.

However, CIAA spokesperson Bhola Dahal stated the result of the investigation had not been made public but. “We will make it public after the investigation is over,” he stated.

The nation’s apex anti-graft physique CIAA had taken management of the Pashupatinath Temple on Sunday afternoon to research the newly put in gold ornaments across the Shiva Linga.

The PADT claimed that it had final yr put in the decoration weighing 108 kilograms — 103 kilograms of gold and 5 kilograms of different supplies comparable to copper and silver — across the Shiva Linga within the premises of the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu.

However, stories say that the precise weight of the decoration is 10 kilograms lower than what was claimed. This sparked controversy and questions have been raised on the matter within the parliament.