Mahakal Lok corridor: Political storm rages after wind knocks down idols in Ujjain temple

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan hasordered an investigation after some idols of the Mahakal Lok corridor were damaged in a storm in Ujjain — a famous city in the central Indian state.

Despite an official inquiry, the "political storm" over the incident continues to rage as the opposition party has accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of corruption in the Mahakal Lok corridor, whose first phase was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Mahakaleshwar temple premises in October 2022.

Over the last weekend, gusty winds knocked down six of the seven idols of 'Saptarishis' which were installed at a corridor developed on the temple premises.

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While speaking about the incident, Chouhan told reporters: "I am getting the matter inquired and have sought a report."

Allegations of corruption

The opposition Congress in the state has levelled allegations against BJP and constituted a committee to conduct a probe, a party leader said on Monday. Piyush Babele, who is the media advisor to MP Congress chief Kamal Nath, told news agency PTI that the party has constituted a seven-member committee, which includesfive party legislators.

Nath said, "When the then Congress government of Madhya Pradesh had resolved to make a grand construction of the Mahakal temple complex in Ujjain, it could not have imagined that the subsequent government would commit serious irregularities in the construction of Mahakal Lok."

He added, "I demand from the chief minister that new idols be installed immediately and those who indulge in sub-standard constructions should be punished after an investigation."

On Tuesday, Congress in-charge for Madhya Pradesh JP Aggarwal demanded a probe by a high court-monitored commission. Aggarwal said, "We demand that a high court-monitored commission should investigate the scam as it is a question of crores of people of the state."

Mahakal Lok corridor

The first phase of the project was inaugurated by PM Modi last year in October. But Aggarwal said that the government must answer about how the idols were made as he claimed that Rs 351 crore was spent on the construction of the first phase.

He also asked, "Were the idols made of paper that they got broken with a slight wind... The country is asking when will the BJP continue to play with the faith of people to enjoy the fruits of power."

"Did Ujjain local MLA Mahesh Parmar and several other legislators raise the demand for a probe into the alleged corruption in the Mahakal project and smart city from chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan," he asked.

When Chouhan spoke to reporters, he said that the idols that got damaged were made of fibre, as he mentioned that it was not possible to make heavy stone figures at such places.

Ujjain Collector Kumar Purushottam on Sunday said there are a total of 160 idols installed at the Mahakal Lok corridor and out of them, six idols of 'Saptarishis' (seven sages) that were around 10 feet tall fell down at around 4 pm as strong winds swept through the area.

(With inputs from agencies)

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