Shillong: After Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, Jagadguru Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, who was set to hold ‘Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra’ in Shillong on October 2, cancelled his trip here on Saturday after the Meghalaya government requested Airport Authority of India (AAI) to refuse landing facility of his chartered flight, officials said.
Jagadguru Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati had earlier announced to hold the ‘Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra’ in different northeastern states, demanding to declare the cow as the mother of the nation and to enact a Central law to stop cow slaughter.
An AAI official of Shillong airport said that they have informed the seer about the Meghalaya government’s decision not to allow his chartered flight to land in Shillong airport at Umroi.
“The chartered flight of Jagadguru Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati landed at the Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala on Saturday morning and after few hours, it went to Guwahati airport,” the official told IANS.
Now, his chartered flight is stationed at the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati.
The ‘Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra’ is facing stiff opposition from different organisations in several states of the northeastern region.
Nagaland and Meghalaya are Christian-majority states, and beef is one of the most common and popular meats consumed by people in several northeastern states.
The District Magistrate of the East Khasi Hills district, in which Meghalaya’s capital Shillong falls, promulgated prohibitory orders under Section 163 BNSS banning the assembly of five or more people in the district.
The District Magistrate R. M. Kurhah, in her order on Friday, said that it has come to the notice of the administration that some organisations are planning to organise a Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra in Shillong, though the organisers did not seek permission for carrying out of the Yatra.
Jagadguru Shankaracharya accompanied by his entourage was supposed to arrive at Shillong airport on Friday, but he rescheduled his Shillong tour on Saturday.
On Friday, hundreds of protestors from various organisations including the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU), gathered outside the Shillong airport to prevent the seer and his entourage from moving out of the airport.
Meanwhile, Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati was turned back from the airports in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland on Thursday after he arrived at the two airports by chartered flight.
The spiritual leader, who arrived at Donyi Polo Airport in Hollongi in Arunachal Pradesh faced opposition from members of the All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU).
Saraswati, who was scheduled to address the Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra in Kohima on September 28, had to return from Dimapur airport on Thursday without fulfilling his planned programme as he was barred from leaving the airport.
The Nagaland government on September 11 announced that it would not allow the holding of ‘Gau Mahasabha’ and Gau Dhwaj Sthapana Bharat Yatra in Kohima on September 28.
Leaders of various civil societies observed that beef has been part of Naga cuisine for many decades and the government and any other organisation cannot hurt the sentiment of the people and the state’s traditions.
The ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), its allies BJP and Naga Peoples’ Front (NPF), and various civil society organisations including the influential Naga Mothers’ Association and Naga Students’ Federation strongly opposed the holding of the ‘Gau Mahasabha’.
–IANS