Kedarnath temple gold plating row: State committee finds no irregularities

Over a year after an inquiry was ordered under the chairmanship of the Garhwal Commissioner into allegations of irregularities in the gold decoration carried out inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Kedarnath Temple, the Badarinath Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) has found no discrepancies or irregularities in the matter, officials aware of the matter said.

The committee found no material fact to suggest that 228 kg of gold was donated to the temple, as the donor himself claimed that only 23 kg of gold was used for decoration.

The controversy erupted in June last year after a video of the gold-plated area of the temple allegedly showed that the decoration in a certain area of the sanctum sanctorum had worn off.

Garhwal Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey, who led the probe, confirmed the development and said, “I was mandated to conduct a probe by the culture secretary. I found no discrepancies or irregularities in the matter. The gold donated by the donor was used entirely under supervision. There is no material fact to suggest that 228 kg of gold was donated. The donor himself said that only 23 kg of gold was used.”

When asked who reported that 228 kg of gold had been used in the Kedarnath temple, the Pandey said, “Even though it was not the mandate of the probe to find out who came up with this number, there is no such mention by the committee. There is no controversy. It is fabricated and baseless.”

Ajendra Ajay, BJP leader and BKTC chairperson, said a pilgrim donor had expressed his desire to gold plate the sanctum sanctorum of the Kedarnath temple and a proposal was thereby examined and cleared during the BKTC board meeting in 2022. The permission was granted in accordance with the provisions laid down in the BKTC Act, 1939, and the work was done under the supervision of experts of the Archaeological Survey of India in 2022.

“We have made public the tax invoice (from where the jeweller acquired the gold), donation admission receipt (of BKTC). These documents make it clear that around 23 kg gold was used in the sanctum sanctorum of Kedarnath along with around 1,000 kg of copper. Gold is always put on copper plates. It is never only gold. This is how it is done in every major shrine of the country. At one place, the gold had worn out, and they (Congress) circulated a close-up picture with allegations that gold had gone missing. Congress is spreading propaganda for political gains,” Ajay said.

He added, “Some people have deliberately mixed-up things and made baseless allegations. Gold had worn out at just one place in the sanctum sanctorum. Craftsmen came on June 17 last year to repair the worn-out spot. Around 23 kg gold worth ₹14 crore and 1,001 kg copper worth ₹29 lakh were used in gold plating inside the temple. The allegations of financial irregularity and missing gold are totally baseless.”

Responding to questions from reporters, Uttarakhand religious affairs and culture minister Satpal Maharaj on Tuesday said, “The person who donated the gold isn’t saying the gold was stolen, while everyone else is making statements. The matter shouldn’t be politicised. All of us have faith in Kedarnath Dham. Any bad word or spreading misconception about it is not appropriate.”

“I had ordered a probe into the matter last year and have sought the report. It is with me. I will study the report and will put the whole thing before the press,” Maharaj said.

When questioned on July 19 by reporters in Dehradun about the allegations, chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, “Imagine, 228 kg of gold is being talked about. And that too in God’s abode. The Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee and saint community have already spoken about it and so I won’t add further here.”

Congress state media in-charge Garima Dasuni asked why the state government didn’t make the report public in the last one year if they had nothing to hide. “They are saying that the donor hasn’t raised any issue. This is bizarre. Donors don’t look back into what has been done with their money or donation by the temple committee authorities. The fact is that people have been kept in the dark about the whole issue. If Satpal Maharaj ordered an inquiry over one year ago, why were its findings not shared so far?”

BJP state media in-charge Manveer Singh Chauhan said that the BKTC and seers have already made it clear that there has been no irregularity. “Congress is creating unnecessary confusion in the matter and indulging in petty politics. Their Kedarnath Yatra is nothing but a ploy to mislead people,” he said.