Shrimahant Narendra Puri of Niranjani Akhara has been elected as the new head of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad. Currently, he is also President and Secretary of the Niranjani Akhara. The previous president of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, Mahant Narendra Giri was found dead in his room in Prayagraj on September 20.
Shrimahant Ravindra Puri joined the Niranjani Akhara in Delhi in 1980 and was elevated to Thanapati in 1994. In 2001, he was elevated to the rank of Upmahant and then elevated to the position of Shrimahant in 2003. For a long time, he was looking after the educational activities of the Niranjani Akhara.
He is currently head of different educational institutes like MM Jain PG College, Sadhu Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya Haridwar, Ramanand Institute of Management Pharma and Technology, run by the Niranjani Akhara.
The Manasa Devi Mandir Trust and the Shravan Nath Math, both in Haridwar, are run by the Niranjani Akhara and is headed by Mahant Ravindra Puri. After he is elected as the head of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, Shrimahant Ravindra Puri said the Akhara Parishad would raise the issue of Deoband’s conspiracy to change the name of Badrinath Dham.
He also demanded CBI inquiry into the death of Sudhir Giri and Kothari Mohan Das. Shrimahant Ravindra Puri also demanded strict action against terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir. Terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir killed four people from Bihar in different incidents.
The Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad is an important body, as it represents all the akharas in the country.
The last head of the body, Mahant Narendra Giri was found dead in his room in Prayagraj on September 20. The police got a call from his disciples in the evening about his body hanging from the ceiling fan in his room. The police found a seven-page ‘suicide note’ blaming his disciple Anand Giri and two others for the extreme step.
Anand Giri of Niranjani Akhara was embroiled in a public fight with Mahant Narendra Giri over the misappropriation of funds. Mahant got him expelled from the Akhara but later accepted Anand Giri’s apology. Anand Giri was also accused of keeping in touch with his family, which goes against the tradition of renouncing the family once one joins the Akhara.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had condoled the death of Mahant Narendra Giri.
On September 22, the Uttar Pradesh Government recommended a CBI inquiry. A five-member team of the CBI started the investigation on September 23.
Anand Giri, who is facing various charges under IPC, including abetment to suicide, is in jail.
After the Supreme Court verdict on November 9, 2019, paved the way for the construction of the Shri Ram temple in Ayodhya, Mahant Narendra Giri had vowed to start similar campaigns in Varanasi and Mathura too.
