Temple row: Sri Sri proposes Tirupati model for darshan

Pune: Spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Sunday claimed to have broken the impasse on the ‘gender bias’ at Shani Shingnapur temple by proposing the ‘Tirupati Balaji’ darshan model that keeps both men and women away from the inner sanctum.

However, women’s activist Trupti Desai said she was awaiting a ‘proper decision’ from the Chief Minister on the issue.

The Art of Living Foundation founder on Sunday held separate meetings with the trustees of the temple and Bhoomata Brigade leader Trupti Desai, who had recently led an agitation against the traditional ban on women at the temple’s sacred ‘chabutara’ (platform). “There are two models for darshan, namely Kashi Vishwanath and Tirupati Balaji. This solution is based on the Tirupati Balaji model where no one, be it a man or woman, is allowed in the inner sanctum,” Sri Sri Ravi Shankar told reporters here after the meeting.

“No one will step on the sacred ‘chabutara’. All will have darshan of the deity from a distance of 3 ft. Thus, there will be no gender discrimination,” he said. It as if you do not receive the blessings of God if you have darshan from some distance,” he said. “There seems to be a communication gap between the two sides,” he said.