Women's entry in Shani Shingnapur temple will lead to rapes: Shankaracharya Swaroopanand Saraswati

Haridwar: Dwaraka-Sharda Peeth Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has once again made a controversial statement saying the entry of women in the Shani Shingnapur temple will lead to crimes such as rapes against them.

Women should not have entered the sanctum sanctorum of the Shani Shingnapur temple as it will bring bad luck to them, the 94-year-old seer said.

Expressing his displeasure on the Shani temple trust's recent decision to lift a 400-year-old ban on women's entry in the sanctum sanctoram, Shankaracharya said, ''Shani is a planet of sins. Worshipping him will lead to a rise in crime against women." .

New agency ANI also quoted the Dwaraka-Sharda Peeth Shankaracharya as saying, ''women entered Shani temple's inner sanctum, due to this, incidents of rapes will increase further.''

Women entered Shani temple inner sanctum, due to this, incidents of rapes will increase further-Shankaracharya Swaroopanand — ANI (@ANI_news) April 11, 2016

Several women's right activists have criticised the Dwarka seer for his highly insensitive and irresponsible remarks.

Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has also held the worship of the "unworthy" Shirdi Sai Baba by his followers responsible for a drought-like situation in Maharashtra.

The Dwaraka seer had on many occasions in past disapproved worshipping Sai Baba.