Shirdi: Activist Trupti Desai Writes To Maharashtra Chief Minister Over Shirdi Temple Dress Code

Shri Saibaba Sansthan Temple Trust in Shirdi recently put up a notice asking the devotees to dress in "civilised clothes" as per "Indian culture".  Activist Trupti Desai, best known for questioning why women couldn't get to enter Haji Ali Mosque in Mumbai, came to know about this notice, she called it an "infringement of the constitutional right to freedom of expression". Desai further added that if the notice was not removed, she along with other activists would remove it themselves at 1 P.M on December 10,2020. Desai has also sent a complaint letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray regarding the same issue.

However, the Shirdi trust claimed that this was not a dress code but merely a request. The temple notice says: "You are entering into holy shrine of Shri Saibaba, hence to observe the holy spirit, humble request to wear civilised costumes or as per Indian Culture."

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In her video message, she told everyone that the sign that has been put up by the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust is wrong  and is clearly an attempt to take away the constitutional right of everyone to express themselves. The activist further aded that a complaint has been sent to the Maharashtra Chief Minister, Uddhav Thackeray which is demanding that the institution should be investigated. She went on and claimed that the devotees know very well how to maintain the purity of a temple.

The Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust's Chief Executive Officer, Kanhuraj Bagate, claimed that the information was wrong. Also, they had received several complaints from other devotees that some people were dressing inappropriately. Hence, they had to put up such a notice. He appealed to the people to just dress properly with a pure heart when coming to the temple for darshan, and added that it would be greatly appreciated if they wear Indian attire.