Shivaratri puja performed to Shivalinga at Aland dargah amid tight security

The Mahashivaratri puja to the Raghava Chaitanya Shivalinga wrong the premises of the Hazrat Ladle Mashak Dargah successful Aland municipality of Kalaburagi territory was performed connected Sunday amid choky constabulary security.

The puja was performed aft the High Court of Karnataka successful Kalaburagi granted support to 13 petitioners to behaviour the rituals, including Rudrabhisheka, betwixt 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. A radical of radical performed rituals astatine the Shivalinga betwixt 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. They were thoroughly frisked by constabulary during their entry, and mobile phones and physics devices were prohibited wrong the premises.

Security deployment included astir 1,000 unit from the District Armed Reserve (DAR) and Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) platoons. At slightest 40 CCTV cameras and 4 drones were utilized to show the country and guarantee the information of devotees.

The territory medication has imposed prohibitory orders crossed Aland municipality nether Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which came into effect connected Saturday nighttime (10 p.m.) and volition stay successful unit till Sunday midnight, with roads barricaded and vehicular question restricted; buses were stopped astir 2 km distant from the town.

Meanwhile, the dargah managing committee challenged the High Court’s bid earlier the Supreme Court, seeking to forestall pujas connected Waqf property. The Supreme Court, however, declined to entertain the plea nether Article 32 of the Constitution and dismissed it arsenic withdrawn. With judicial clearance, the rituals were conducted peacefully nether strict constabulary supervision.

The court’s bid allowed the rituals to beryllium conducted by 2 groups of petitioners. Siddaramaiah Hiremath was permitted individually to execute the puja, portion Gurushant Tengli led a 2nd radical comprising 12 members.

The petitioners who performed the puja included Siddaramaiah Hiremath, Gurushant Tengli, Harshanand Subhash Guttedar, Rakesh Jamadar, Shivaraj Bali, Ashok Bagali, Mallikarjun Savalagi, Shivaputra Nadigeri, Mallikarjun Kandgol, Veeranna Hattargi, Raju Chauhan, Hanumanthrao Patil, Ravi Madankar and Malakanna Hirepujari.

In 2022, Aland municipality witnessed heightened tensions astatine the dargah erstwhile the Urs solemnisation coincided with Mahashivaratri. Clashes betwixt communities during that play led to the apprehension of 167 people. Authorities imposed prohibitory orders from February 27 to March 3 that year, portion constabulary recovered stones, sticks, and rods that had been stockpiled connected the terraces of houses, underscoring the volatility of the concern astatine the time. The tensions prompted the high-security measures adopted for the yearly ritual connected Mahashivaratri.