2 booked over wedding plan of min’s son in Rajaji reserve

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like 2 booked over wedding plan of min’s son in Rajaji reserveletters@hindustantimes.com Dehradun The Uttarakhand forest department on Sunday booked two temple committee office-bearers in the Rajaji Tiger Reserve for allowing elaborate wedding preparations for state cabinet minister Khajan Dass’s son inside the core zone of the reserve, and launched a probe into the lapse, officials said. Following a row over the issue, the minister moved the wedding venue out of the Rajaji Park. The arrangements had sprung up at Sureshwari Devi Temple in the Haridwar range of the reserve. Photos and videos of the setup went viral on social media, prompting the forest department to dismantle the tents and related material on Saturday evening. Park officials then lodged a case against the temple committee office-bearers under the Wildlife Protection Act. The wedding was scheduled for Sunday. Dass, a Rajpur Road MLA who handles social welfare and minority affairs portfolios, dismissed the row as a political conspiracy. He claimed he had informed a senior forest official about the event and that arrangements were made with the temple committee’s consent. Forest officials, however, insisted no permission had been sought for such an event in the reserve’s core zone. Rajiv Dhiman, conservator of forests (Shivalik) and acting director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve, said a probe was under way after the department acted swiftly once alerted. “We have launched an inquiry into the matter. A forest case has been registered against office-bearers of the temple committee over how the arrangements came up there, and the entire material has been removed from the area,” he said. “No permission was sought for the event. We have also issued a show-cause notice to forest staff to explain how the material entered the core zone and whether there was any negligence at their level,” Dhiman added. He said action would follow against anyone else found involved. A forest official, speaking anonymously, said temple visits are regulated under standing orders and Supreme Court directions, with restricted movement. “People visit the temple in accordance to their faith. Our staff was aware that some event was being held there, but they did not know whose event it was. There was no indication that preparations were being made on such a grand scale,” he said. The temple operates under strict rules: fixed worship hours, no movement beyond those times, limited night stays for priests and attendants, bans on wildlife-disturbing activities or animal movement obstructions, no loudspeakers, and temple management’s duty to prevent littering and ensure compliance. Violations attract Wildlife Protection Act penalties, officials said. Speaking to mediapersons, cabinet minister and Rajpur Road MLA Khajan Dass insisted he had notified the forest director about the wedding and that everything was approved by the temple committee. “The allegations are politically motivated,” he said.