Devotees break gate obstructing Devra Yatra in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag; case filed against 52

Devotees participating in the Devra Yatra of Agastyamuni Maharaj in the Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand allegedly broke down a gate on Thursday, which was obstructing the route of their procession, and proceeded with the palanquin carrying the deity, which had been stalled for several hours, officials said.

The yatra began on Wednesday from the temple of Maharishi Agastyamuni and followed its established schedule. However, the palanquin was halted at the gate of the local sports department’s premises, which was viewed as an obstruction.

The large number of devotees present allegedly created a chaotic situation, resulting in the national highway being blocked for several hours. Consequently, the deity’s palanquin had to return without completing the traditional rituals.

When the yatra resumed on Thursday, the situation had not changed. After waiting for the administration to address the issue until noon, frustrated devotees took matters into their own hands by allegedly breaking down the gate to carry out the religious rituals. The Rudraprayag district administration has since taken action against those involved in breaking the gate, filing cases against 52 individuals under the relevant sections.

Rudraprayag District Magistrate Prateek Jain said that all necessary arrangements had been made by the administration for the previous Devra Yatra, calling it unfortunate that a chaotic situation emerged despite these preparations.

Meanwhile, those associated with the yatra claimed that they had requested the district administration two weeks before to remove the gate obstructing the traditional route. A follow-up request was made on Wednesday, but despite assurances, no action was taken until Thursday afternoon.

This lack of response increased the frustration of the devotees, leading them to remove the obstruction themselves.