Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati Giri of Dasna Temple in Ghaziabad has accused the police and the authorities of failing to provide enough protection to him during the Dharma Sansad, which was held in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, May 1, 2022. He claimed that if it hadn’t been for the thousands of people who stood by him, the consequences would have been grave.
Yati Narasinghanand voiced his unhappiness in the ongoing Dharma Sansad case. He was disappointed that Waseem Rizvi alias Jitendra Narayan Tyagi has been confined to jail for the last 4 months in the case.
It may be recalled that the Uttarakhand Police had on January 13 arrested Wasim Rizvi alias Jitendra Tyagi in connection with the Haridwar ‘Dharm Sansad’ hate speech case. The Uttarakhand police, subsequently also arrested Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati from his dharna site in Haridwar in connection with his alleged derogatory remarks against women politicians. Besides, many other cases were registered against him in various places in the country.
OpIndia spoke to Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati to inquire about the status of the cases in which he is the complainant. In addition, we attempted to learn about the history of the Dasna region and the temple there.
‘Hindus were majority once in this region, not any more’
“This Dasna area used to be once dominated by Hindus,” Yati Narasinghanand stated. However, currently, Hindus, have become a minority in this region. Many of them have migrated. They (Muslims) have risen rapidly in number over the past few years. Hindu traders from this region have settled in Ghaziabad, Pilkhua, and Noida. Now, Muslims make up 95 per cent of the population. People visit my temple from all around the country.”
‘Temple has been destroyed as a result of the Muslim invasion’: Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati
Speaking about the history of the Dasna temple, Narsinghanand informed, “Dasna Devi Temple is one of the oldest Shaktipeeths in India. History has it that this temple was broken by Muslim invaders, only to be rebuilt later. It’s been almost 300 years since it was rebuilt,” he said.
‘All of the Mahants who came before me were either killed or driven away’: Yati Narsinghanand reveals
“Along with the attempt to kill me, several dacoities in this temple have also been perpetrated,” the Mahant stated. All the priests who came before me were either killed or forced to flee. There was a prominent saint named Mouni Baba aka Ramanand Giri. He was the Juna Akhara’s Mahant. He too was thrashed thrice and robbed so he was forced to leave the temple premises. The last assault on him was so brutal that his ribs were almost shattered. All his deposits were looted. The continuous persecution had compelled him to leave the temple premises in the year 2003,” recalled the Dasna temple Mahant.
Speaking about how various other Mahants of the Dasna temple were persecuted and forced to flee, Yati Narsinghanand continued that after Mouni Baba his disciple Ganesh Giri joined the temple. He too was severely battered and driven away. “Until today, no one knows the whereabouts of Swami Brahmanand, the Mahant who was in charge of the Dasna temple prior to Maoni Baba”, stated Narsinghanand, adding, “People only know that the temple was robbed and vandalised, but no one knows what happened to Swami Brahmanand. There have been many more such cases,” the Mahant lamented.
‘Police do not take any action on our complaints’
Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati further spoke about how the police have continued to ignore their concerns. “There is a sizable Muslim population here,” he explained. As a result, Muslims get elected to positions such as Zilla Panchayat and Nagar Panchayat. They continue to wield political power over the police, said Narasinghanand.
Here he recalled how in August 2021, one Swami Nareshanand, who resided at this temple after arriving from Bihar, was attacked and his stomach was ripped open. However, no culprit has been apprehended in that case despite the fact that the perpetrators were visible on the CCTV camera.
Using the aforementioned incident as an example, the Mahant lamented how the local authorities in the region are so terrified of the Muslim population that any discussion or decision concerning the Dasna temple is invariably made by the local Muslims dwelling there.
Yati Narasinghanand recounts the long series of robberies and extremist attacks in the temple, but not a single arrest yet
The Hindu saint went on to say, “I became the Mahant of this temple in 2007-2008. This temple was the scene of a horrible robbery on July 10, 2010. Everyone present here had been assaulted. An attempt on my life was made that day, but I had left the temple at night. Everyone inquired about me. In this situation, no one has been apprehended to date, and the investigation has not even been opened. Following this, on July 23, 2010, a Muslim mob tried vandalising the temple. Even after a police complaint, until today, not a single miscreant has been apprehended in this case. A few years down the line, another horrific theft took place in the temple on September 17, 2014. There was a proper shootout that took place. In this case, too, a police complaint was made. The police, as in all previous cases, was unconcerned and took no action against the perpetrators.”
‘Those who issued fatwas against me are roaming scot-free’: Narasinghanand
The Hindu saint went on to discuss the multiple assassination attempts and conspiracies hatched against him. Bemoaning the police’s inaction in addressing issues involving him and the Dasna temple, the Mahant said, “Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists came from Kashmir to kill me, but only one of them was arrested. No efforts were made to nab the rest. In fact, within no time, the case was only closed. Similarly, many Maulanas have openly issued fatwas calling for my assassination. On social media, there are several reports about them. Huge rallies have been organised by Muslims at many places demanding my beheading. However, the police seem to have turned a blind eye toward all these radical Islamists,” said the Hindu saint.
The Dasna temple’s Mahant recalled another assassination attempt at him. He recounted how on June 2, 2021, sevadaars of Dasna Mandir, Ghaziabad, caught two men identified as Vipul Vijayvargi, who converted to Islam and his brother-in-law Kashif, who went to the temple to kill him.
It may be recalled that the two radicalised youths Ramzan and Kasif had faked their identities as Vipul Vijayvargiya and Kashi Gupta to enter the Dasna Devi Temple in Ghaziabad on the night of June 2 to carry out an assassination attempt on Mahant Yati Narsinghanand. They were allegedly caught with surgical blades, cyanide, an acupressure pump and some religious books.
The Mahant further lamented how the accused were charged in minor sections and are currently out on bail. “They’ll hatch another plot against me tomorrow,” said Narasinghanand, adding, “Following that, a large gang of converts were apprehended, who even possessed cyanide. However, the cops let them go and never mentioned cyanide. Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath had then condemned the attack and ordered an inquiry but it is up to the officials to take action.
‘SP MLA Aslam Chaudhary’s son was caught molesting girls but was released’
The Dasna Temple priest continued, “The last time Aslam Chaudhary, a Samajwadi Party MLA was here in the year 2019-2020, his son assaulted a devotee near the shrine. We apprehended him. He was identified as the son of the MLA. He was beaten severely by the boys in our temple. We later handed him over to the police. The police, however, let alone taking any action, did not even file a report on the case.”
‘Powerful syndicate rallying together to save the assailants’
The Mahant went on to explain how an entire network of influential people in the Muslim community is rallying behind these miscreants, who, in turn, are carrying out the crime brazenly due to the former’s clout and connections. “Those who came into our facility armed with surgical blades were released on bail. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind defends these terrorists. You can figure out who’s behind them. These are powerful people who are rallying behind such miscreants. They will definitely kill me…if not today, then tomorrow. Their efforts are ongoing,” said Narasinghanand.
‘The temple is targetted since it is the epicentre of Sanatan Dharma’
“In the past, the Dasna temple was an epicentre of Sanatan Dharma,” the Mahant continued. “These radicals are afraid that the temple would once again become a Sanatan Kendra. That is the cause of their rage. Besides, they are also eyeing the temple’s land and property. The temple’s boundary has also been damaged multiple times. We keep the idols under strict security and supervision to ensure that no one may access them. However, the opposition’s main point of contention is religious”, said Narasinghanand.
‘I do not fear death’: Narasinghanand Saraswati
Further talking to OpIndia, Narasinghanand Saraswati said that he does not fear death. “The security provided to me and my temple does not imply that I fear death. Devi maa (the goddess) has determined the date and time of my demise, still, we continue to take precautions. Nareshanand Ji had been attacked by breaching this security. Two people came to kill me with surgical blades after bypassing this security. That is why my own companions guard me. Almost the majority of Dasna’s Muslims are against me.”
‘Murtaza Abbasi was sent to end Yogi Adityanath’s political career’
When asked about the Gorakhnath temple attack, Narasinghanand opined that it was carried out with an intention to stigmatize Yogi Adityanath’s political career. “Murtaza Abbasi was a chemical engineer and an IIT graduate. Still, he attacked Gorakhnath temple. He was sent there to derail Yogi Adityanath’s political career. He purposefully attacked the cops. If the police had turned and shot Murtaza, the news would have spread throughout the world that a young and promising IIT engineer has been slain by Yogi Adityanath’s police in Goraksha Peeth. Since he survived, he was deemed insane. Those who attack Hindu temples are either declared minors or mad. Actually, this is a massive conspiracy. If they are insane, why do they target temples?” asked Narasinghanand, adding that choosing minors to attack him and his temple is also a part of this particular conspiracy.
