THOUSANDS of Bajrang Dal activists conducted Budha Amarnath Yatra. They left on the pilgrimage on August 11 and returned on August 15. Budha Amarnath is done in Punchch district of Jammu and Kasmir, about 250 kms away from Jammu. Bajrang Dal conducts this Yatra every year.
According to Shri Vinod Bansal, media coordinator of the VHP Delhi, the activists had left for the pilgrimage in buses from Delhi. It is believed that Rishi Pulatsya, the grandfather of Ravana, used to go to the holy cave of Swami Amar Nath. When he became old and was unable to reach the cave, Baba Amar Nath appeared at the place in the form of rock Shivlinga. Since then, the place became famous as Baba Budha Amar Nath. The river nearby is called Pulasti and the place is called Punchh. Shri Bansal said Hindu population in three of the six districts of Jammu division decreased drastically. The Hindu population in Doda and Rajouri districts is 40 and 35 per cent respectively whereas in Punchh it is just 9 per cent. The Yatra also boosted the moral of the Kashmiri Hindus and the security forces deployed there.
(FOC)
