Prayagraj, 20 Jan

Amid a row over authorities "stopping" Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati from taking a holy dip in the Ganga here, the Mela administration has issued a notice asking him to explain how he was using the title of Shankaracharya of the Jyotish Peeth.

Trouble broke out on Sunday when Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, along with his supporters, was on his way to take a dip in the Sangam on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya and the police allegedly stopped him.

Following the incident, Saraswati sat in protest outside his camp, giving up food and water, and demanded an apology from senior officials of the mela administration and the police. The protest is still going on.

The notice issued on Monday by the Vice Chairman of the Prayagraj Mela Authority, Dayanand Prasad, also refers to a civil appeal pending before the Supreme Court, in which the court had ordered that until the appeal is disposed of, no religious leader can be consecrated as the Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth.

The notice states that it is clear from the current situation that no religious leader has been consecrated as the Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth, yet Saraswati has declared himself as the Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth on a board at his camp in the Prayagraj Magh Mela of 2025-26.

"This act/display of yours shows disregard for the order of the Honourable Supreme Court. Within 24 hours of receiving this letter, please clarify how you are using the word Shankaracharya before your name," the notice said.

Reacting to the notice, Saraswati's media in-charge, Shailendra Yogiraj, claimed that Maharaj Ji had already been consecrated as the Shankaracharya of the Jyotish Peeth before the Supreme Court order.

Yogiraj claimed that on the Mauni Amavasya bathing festival, Saraswati was peacefully going to take a bath at the Sangam on his palanquin with his followers when the police asked him to get down from the palanquin and go to the bathing ghat.

He claimed that when he refused to get down from the palanquin, the police beat up his supporters, injuring about 15 of them.

All the injured have undergone medical examinations, and Swami Ji will file a case against the police and administration officials, Yogiraj said.

Yogiraj also said that Swami Ji would not enter his camp until the Mela administration apologises and arranges for him to bathe according to protocol.

Mela Adhikari Rishiraj claimed that Saraswati and his followers broke through the barricades and came to the Sangam Nose, and the administration took this step to prevent a stampede.

"By breaking the barricades, they reached the Sangam Nose on Sunday. To prevent any stampede-like situation on the main bathing day, the administration intervened. We have evidence, and vehicles were not permitted under any circumstances on the main bathing festival," he had said.

"Several sadhus and seers, including those camping near Swami Ji, took the holy dip. No saint was disrespected. The arrangements made for devotees and Kalpvasis were strictly implemented because their safety is our top priority," he had stated.

The Congress on Monday launched a scathing attack on the BJP over the alleged "mistreatment" meted out to Saraswati, and demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi must intervene against this "shameful incident.