A Hindu seer from Ayodhya sat on an “indefinite hunger strike” near Sohna toll plaza in Haryana after authorities stopped him from entering Nuh in view of VHP’s “Jal Abhishek” Yatra on Monday. Jagadguru Paramhans Acharya said he had come to Haryana from Ayodhya to perform ‘Jal Abhishek’ Pooja in Nuh. However, Section 144 was imposed in Nuh and police stopped him near the Sohna toll plaza. This enraged the seer who announced a “hunger strike till death” in protest.

Speaking to news agency ANI, the seer said that he came to Nuh to pay homage to Bajrang Dal activists who died in last month’s communal clashes and brought the soil of Ram Janmabhoomi and water from the holy Sarayu River to perform Jal Abhishek there.

“The administration has stopped us here; they are not allowing us to move ahead nor they are allowing us to go back. So, I am doing fast until death. If they (the administration) will shift me somewhere else, I will do fast until death there also,” the Hindu seer said.

#WATCH | Nuh, Haryana: Seer Jagadguru Paramhans Acharya Maharaj from Ayodhya stopped at the Sohna toll plaza by the administration.

“I have come here from Ayodhya…The administration has stopped us here, they are not allowing us to move ahead nor they are allowing us to go… pic.twitter.com/m1Dv76xkna

— ANI (@ANI) August 28, 2023

Earlier in the day, the VHP had said its Yatra would be symbolic after authorities denied permission and imposed Section 144 in Nuh. Mobile internet services and bulk SMS were also suspended in the area in a bid to stop the spread of rumours and misinformation on social media.

Schools, colleges, and banks in Nuh also remained shut amid fears of any untoward incident if the Yatra is carried out. The situation in Nuh remained peaceful at the time of writing this report. However, the police have made elaborate security arrangements and deployed more than 1,500 Haryana police personnel in the area. Several companies of paramilitary forces have also been deployed in the communally charged district.

Nuh witnessed communal clashes last month after the “Jal Abhishek” Yatra was attacked. Six people including two home guards and a cleric had died in the clashes. The Yatra had to be suspended and the VHP wanted to complete it on the last Monday of the holy Sawan month.