Chandigarh Jain temple seeks probe into viral video of monk with woman
The monk rumoured to be in the video finds himself in the eye of the storm as holy men from the Jain community are expected to live a life of strict austerity.
A probe has been demanded by members of the Shri Digamber Jain Mandir in Chandigarh’s Sector 27 into the viral video of a man, reportedly a Digamber Jain monk, emerging from a room with a woman in an Uttar Pradesh (UP) temple.
Living in the mandir since July 24 to observe Chaturmaas (a period of fasting and prayers during the rainy season), the monk rumoured to be in the video finds himself in the eye of the storm as holy men from the Jain community are expected to live a life of strict austerity.
The temple on Wednesday had heavy police presence as over a 100 members of the Jain community from UP and Delhi collected outside, raising slogans and demanding that the man give up his monkhood.
Digamber (which means sky-clad) is one of Jainism’s two main schools, other than Svetamber (white-clad). Monks of the former order do not wear any clothes.
Three video clips which have been shared widely reportedly show Digamber muni Nayan Sagar and a woman exiting a room at about 1:14am of June 23 in what’s alleged to be the Vahelna Jain Temple in Muzaffarnagar, UP. The members of the Sector 27 mandir had in a complaint to the Chandigarh police on August 3 had asked for a probe to ascertain veracity of the clips.
Abduction charge
Allegations of the monk abducting the woman also surfaced, but were refuted later by her.
“On July 28 Nayan Sagar was booked for allegedly abducting a 26-year-old M Tech student in Haridwar. The woman’s father registered an FIR. However, on July 31, in a statement to the UP police, the woman declared him innocent,” said Karun Jain, a member of the mandir.
Another member alleged that the protesters had been brought to Sector 27 by a Delhi businessman who had personal reasons for maligning the monk.
Once the police report is received a committee of 15 members will meet to decide the matter, Karun Jain added.
The footage
Three video clips of CCTV camera number 16 have reportedly been recorded on June 23 at the Vahelna Jain Temple in Muzaffarnagar, UP.
First clip: (10:32pm to 10:35pm) A female comes out of a room and waits.
Second clip: (10:36pm) A monk enters the room.
Third clip: (1:13:56 pm to 1:14:32) A monk opens the door, looks to his left and leaves. The woman emerges a few seconds later, looks to her left and then goes back into the room.
