Hema Malini Calls For A "Grand Temple" In Mathura After Ayodha And Kashi

Actor-turned-politician Hema Malini made a statement on Sunday expressing her hopes for a 'grand temple' in Mathura.

The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) MP said that after the temples were built in Ayodhya and Kashi, her constituency of Mathura is also going to have a temple. She referred to the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor recently inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She said that the temple in Mathura can also be beautified in a similar manner.

Hema Malini Mathura Temple Plan:

Speaking to the media, she said, "After the restoration of Ram Janmabhoomi and Kashi, naturally Mathura is also very important." The politician was in Indore to attend an event and then headed to Kashi on Monday.

Malini said that Mathura is the birthplace of Lord Krishna who is a symbol of love and affection. "I will say that there should be a grand temple."

“A temple is already there and can be beautified like Modi-ji developed Kashi Vishwanath corridor and the river Ganga can be seen directly from the temple," she added. She also spoke about the redevelopment of Kashi Vishwanath corridor and said that the change was very difficult. She said, "This shows his farsightedness. This will also happen in Mathura."

Like the cities Ajmer, Varanasi, Dwarka, Gaya and others, the central government has also included Mathura as one of the Heritage cities for the National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY). The Mathura city in Uttar Pradesh has been claimed as "the birthplace of Lord Krishna as per the Hindu texts."

Hema Malini's comments come in the light of the political wave of temple conversations across the country. The Krishna Janmasthan temple complex in the city is believed to be the place where he was born and the actor was quick to cash in on the Kashi Viswanath ride to reiterate this.

At the moment, this is how the complex is structured. There is a temple named Kesava Deo Temple which was built in ancient times over an underground prison. This is where "the Hindu god is believed to have taken birth." Every year on Janmashtami, Lord Krishna's birthday, a grand celebration takes place at the said temple to mark the occasion.

There is no detailed plan yet to verify Malini's claims about Mathura.

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