AMRITSAR: Accusing the Pakistan govt of unlawfully occupying the 127-year-old memorial of Jain guru Acharya Vijyanand Suri in Gujranwala, India-based Jain Heritage Foundation (JHF) has decided to build its replica in Ludhiana.
Acharya Vijyanand Suri, also known as Swami Amanand, died in Gujranwala in May 1896. He was born and brought up in Punjab. Ashwani Jain, general secretary of JHF, said, “Pakistan’s Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) has occupied more than 20 rooms of the sprawling 6,000 sqft Samadhi Mandir complex. It has also put up its signboards and doesn’t allow Jains to enter the shrine.” These rooms were used by Jain monks earlier to meditate and perform rituals, he said, adding that they also served as residential quarters for Jain pilgrims visiting Pakistan.
Ashwani alleged that the Pakistan govt often denies visas to people of the Jain community from India and prevents them from visiting the Samadhi Mandir to commemorate the anniversary of Swami Amanand. This has deeply hurt the Jain community in India, he said.
Last year, Jain Acharya Sri Dharma Dhurandhar Suri undertook a journey on foot to Lahore and Gujranwala, where he engaged with Pakistan’s officials, but his efforts yielded no results. He was the first Jain monk to visit Pakistan on foot since Independence, Ashwani said.
Attempts to take up the issue with Pakistan govt and ETPB officials have been futile, leaving the Jains with just one option.
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