Jain Protest: 72-Year-Old Monk Dies During Hunger Strike
A 72-year-old Jain priest who was on a hunger strike as part of the community’s nationwide protest has died in Jaipur on 3rd of January as per the police reports.
Just a few days back we released about the ongoing protests held by the Jain community after Jharkhand government’s decision to declare sacred Shri Sammed Shikharji a tourist place and incidents of alleged vandalism in Palitana have caused anger among lakhs of people belonging to the Jain community. Hundreds of members of the Jain community have been taking out rallies and foot marches in several cities including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Delhi and Ranchi in the last few days. Jains- a community that firmly follow non-violence and usually distance themselves from controversies have perhaps for the first time in decades come forward to hold protests.
Now in the latest update, an extremely said incident has emerged from the ongoing Jain protests. A 72-year-old Jain monk who was on a hunger strike since 9 days as part of the community’s nationwide protest died in Jaipur on 3rd January 2023. The deceased Jain priest was identified as Sugyeyasagar Maharaj and was a resident of Rajasthan’s Banswara district. According to community members, the monk had also taken part in a peace march in Jaipur on 1st January 2023. He was on a hunger strike at Sanghiji temple in Rajasthan’s Jaipur, where he lost his life. After this sad news started to surface around the country, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, paid tribute to the late monk in a tweet and also targeted the BJP government, calling them heartless.
Chandra Prakash Goyal, the Director General (DG), Union Ministry of Forest, Environment and Climate change, wrote to Jharkhand Chief Secretary Sukhdev Singh, suggesting the Jharkhand government to have a “relook” and send fresh recommendations in the matter. However, the state government is yet to issue a final order on the issue. Talking to the media on completion of three years in office as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand Hemant Soren had said the issue was under consideration.
