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The Uttaranchal unit of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has demanded to ban the sale of meat and liquor in the holy cities of Rishikesh and Haridwar. The VHP workers took out a procession in Rishikesh recently to pressurise their demands. The procession began from Triveni Ghat and reached the Kotwali where they staged a dharna and shouted slogans demanding to keep the holy city sacred and pious.
Dr Swami Rameshwar Das Vaishnav, member, VHP'sKendriya Margdarshak Mandal while describing Uttaranchal as Devbhoomi, said Rishikesh and Haridwar were the gateway of the Dharmabhoomi. Due to the Ardhkumbh, several lakhs of people come to this place. They come here with religious purpose but to their dismay they find that meat, eggs and liquor are openly sold here, he said. Swami Kamleshanand warned of an agitation if the sale of these objectionable articles was not banned in the holy cities. The other prominent persons who spoke on the occasion included State VHP Secretary, Govind Aggarwal, District President R.K. Sharma and city President Anil Kumar Shukla. Later, the VHP, submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister demanding that the sale of meat, eggs and liquor must be banned in the holy cities of the state.
