Fight holds up Saint Thiruvalluvar's statue in Haridwar

A 12-feet statue of renowned Tamil poet and philosopher Thiruvalluvar that arrived Haridwar on Tuesday did not get a grand welcome ceremony due to lack of accord between the community of saints and the district administration. 

However, a small ceremony was conducted at the state government guest house in Dam Kothi, which was attended by BJP MP Tarun Vijay, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik, Meghalaya Governor V. Shanmuganathan among others. 

Haridwar District Magistrate Harbans Singh Chugh in accordance to Chief Minister Harish Rawat's directive said that the statue would be set up in a public place in full grandeur with the consent of the saints, where the CM of Uttarakhand and Governor K K Paul would be invited. 

The initiative for setting up the statue in Haridwar was taken up by BJP MP Tarun Vijay who also provided financial assistance for it. The statue will act as a symbol of national integration, he said.

According to the Times of India, initially, the statue was supposed to be installed near Har ki Pauri on the banks of Ganga. However, it was shifted near Dam Kothi guest house after sadhus from the Ganga Sabha agitated against its installation. "Ganga is a goddess herself. Why have other gods or great men on her banks?" said Ganga Sabha president Purushottam Sharma Gandhiwadi.

After which the district administration decided to install the statue near Shankaracharya Chowk, which has a statue of Adi Shankaracharya already. However, soon after the statue reached the spot, sadhus from various sabhas and ashrams protested against the move. When a statue of Adi Shankara is already at the spot, there is no need for a statue of "someone else", said the sadhus.

• Thiruvalluvar statue
• Haridwar