In Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district’s Palitana town, has the Shetrunjay hill. It is one of the most important pilgrimage sites of the Jain community. There are many important Jain temples on the hill. Along with the Jain temples, there is a Shiva temple as well. Since many years there have been controversies regarding the management of the Shiv temple which is known as the Neelkanth Mahadev temple. The management of the Jain temples and also that of the Neelkanth Mahadev temple was being done by Sheth Anandji Kalyanji Pedhi for many years. Sometime back, with regard to the temple, the Gujarat High Court had passed an order that the Hindu community can select a priest for the temple but that has to be done in consultation with the Anandji Kalyanji Pedhi and the priest is paid by the Jain trust. The court also said that anyone can visit and pray at the temple during the day. However, no one will be allowed to stay on the hill at night. 

On 16 December, 2022, differences between two groups, Sheth Anandji Kalyanji Pedhi and Nilkanth Mahadev Seva Samiti, which had appointed the priest at the temple, escalated after the board and the iron poles holding the CCTV cameras were damaged. Along with the poles the Footsteps (Charan Paduka) of the Jain god were also vandalized. The incident was caught on camera and it went viral. The entire Jain community in the country was upset with this and arranged a massive protest rally on 18th December 2022 in Palitana against the temple samiti and the Hindu organizations who want the control of the temple. The rally organized by the Jain community was attended by more than 10,000 people from across the country. However, the priest of the temple, Charananda Swami said that it was not his organization or any other Hindu organization that uprooted the CCTV pole but it was done by some miscreants who want to create a rift between both the communities. He demanded strict action against the miscreants. However the priest also added that the Anandji Kalyanji Pedhi had removed the dhwaja (flag) that the priest had put up on the Neelkanth temple. He also said that the Jain trust had illegally encroached upon the temple premises. After this controversy, the Gujarat government asked two MLAs to investigate the matter. It is learned that Jain Samaj leaders are going to meet the Chief Minister with demands regarding the dispute over Shetrunjay hill.

The main demands of the Jain Samaj are as follows.

• The vandalism of Charan Paduka should be immediately investigated and appropriate action taken.

• Illegal mining along the route and illegal constructions / encumbrances on hill should be stopped

• The pressure of lorries etc. on foothill roads should be removed. They should be given an alternative arrangement.

• The brewery nearby should be removed

• Remove or change the administration of the palanquin association.  

Along with the protest at Palitana, the Jain community around the world is also protesting for another temple town. Sammed Shikhar Ji, located in Giridih district of Jharkhand, is the biggest pilgrimage center of Jains. 

The Jharkhand government decided to declare Sammed Shikhar Ji as a Tourist place. However it is a very important pilgrimage place for the Jains and they do not want it to be termed as tourist places. As then it will allow the tourists to visit the holy place for fun and entertainment and will disturb the holiness of the place.  

The community wants the place to be declared as a non-violent, holy, vegetarian Jain pilgrimage town. Protest marches were held in Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and other parts of India as well as in Canada against the Jharkhand government’s decision.

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