The matter concerns the route from Kanthal Square to Chhatri Chowk, also known as Bada Sarafa Marg, in Ujjain. Ahead of the Simhastha Kumbh 2028, work is underway in the old part of the city to widen roads and improve traffic arrangements. A nearly 170-year-old standing Hanuman temple came within the scope of the road-widening project.
The administration removed the temple's boundary wall and part of the building, but efforts to safely relocate the Hanuman idol installed inside the temple have not succeeded. The idol has now been kept protected under a tent. Meanwhile, Hindu organisations and local devotees have started opposing its removal.
On Tuesday evening, hundreds of people gathered at the temple premises and performed a Maha Aarti. Drums and traditional percussion instruments were played, Hanuman Chalisa was recited, and devotees demanded that the administration allow the idol to remain at its original location.
To remove the idol without causing any damage, the Ujjain administration sought the assistance of technical experts. A team of engineers and specialists was also called from Indore. The experts spent two days studying the idol's base and the surrounding structure before attempting to relocate it. The effort was made with the objective of ensuring that the idol suffered no damage.
Despite all precautions, however, there was no change in the situation. The administration is now preparing to decide the next technical course of action based on expert advice rather than taking any hurried step.
A pit approximately one-and-a-half feet deep has also been dug below the idol to determine the condition of its base. The exercise is aimed at understanding how the idol has been installed and what kind of structure lies beneath it. The next stage of the process will be decided only after examining the idol and its foundation.
The administration has maintained that its priority is to relocate and reinstall the idol at another location without causing any damage. A proposal has reportedly been made to install the idol at Tanki Chowk.
As information about the attempts to remove the idol reached local residents and Hindu organisations, opposition intensified. A large number of devotees reached the temple premises on Tuesday evening, where a Maha Aarti was held. Drums and traditional percussion instruments were played and Hanuman Chalisa was recited.
Devotees and Hindu organisations said that after several attempts failed to move the idol, the administration should reconsider its decision to relocate it. They said road widening is necessary, but removing the idol should not be treated as the only option.
Temple priest Sulabh Shantanu Sharma and members of the temple committee have also objected to the proposed relocation. They said roads are present on both sides of the temple and argued that the administration should reconsider the road plan.
The priest has demanded a written guarantee if the administration wants to relocate the idol. According to the demand, a written assurance should first be provided that the idol will be safely installed at Tanki Chowk without suffering any damage. Only after such a guarantee would permission be given to remove the idol.
According to Bhagwati Lal Rajpurohit, a person knowledgeable about Ujjain's history and religious sites, the idol and temple are quite old. The temple is said to be around 170 years old. However, because sindoor has been applied to the idol for a long period, its original form and facial expression are not completely visible.
The site is nevertheless considered significant in the religious and historical landscape of Ujjain's old city. As a result, the issue of relocating the idol during road widening has moved beyond the construction work itself and has become connected with religious sentiments.
After the idol failed to move, local devotees began expressing a distinct religious belief. They consider the development a sign of Lord Hanuman's will and say that the idol's failure to move despite repeated attempts indicates that it should remain at the same location.
The administration and technical experts, however, are viewing the situation as a technical and structural challenge rather than a religious indication. With both sides maintaining their respective positions, the administration now has to find a way to ensure that the development work is not disrupted while religious sentiments surrounding the Hanuman idol are also respected.
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