LUCKNOW: Creating ripples, UP CM Yogi Adityanath on Saturday called Gyanvapi the real embodiment of Lord Vishwanath himself. He said that it was “unfortunate” that people associated the name with a mosque, referring to the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi.“Unfortunately, people call Gyanvapi a mosque, but it is actually ‘Baba Vishwanath’ (Lord Shiva) himself,” said Yogi while addressing the inaugural session of an international seminar at Deendayal Upadhyay Gorakhpur University.The CM’s statement has come close on the heels of an order of a Varanasi court on the Gyanvapi case on Thursday. The court rejected a petition from the Hindu side seeking repairs to the basement of ‘Vyas Ji ka Thekhana’ on the Gyanvapi mosque premises.Later, the CM’s remarks were posted on his official social media handle as: “Today people call Gyanvapi a mosque in other words, but Gyanvapi is actually Lord Vishwanath personified.”The CM said the confusion about its “true identity or name” was the biggest obstacle not only to worship and offering prayers but also to national unity and integrity.Meanwhile, the first reaction to Adityanath’s statement came from Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi of All India Muslim Jamat. He said the statement was against the decorum of the chair of the CM. He said that Gyanvapi is a historical mosque and that he did not agree with the CM’s statement. “He is the CM for the entire state irrespective of section which supports him and those who do not,” said Razvi. The cleric said that Namaz was being offered at Gyanvapi for ages and it was a well know mosque.
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