The Thackeray government in Maharashtra should immediately allow the opening of temples and places of worship of other religions without testing the restraint of the religious leaders, saints and members of the Warkari sect further. A time should not come when these religious elders have to forcibly enter temples and other places of worship, BJP state president, Chandrakant Patil, said in a media statement.

The state administration had asked all temples and other places of worship to close their gates to check the spread of the virus during the lockdown. The Warkari sect, which worships Lord Vitthal, has a huge following in Maharashtra and other states. The sect is culturally and politically significant in the state. Its main temple in Pandharpur town in Solapur district has been closed since March 17.

The BJP on Tuesday staged a state-wide agitation demanding permission to open temples and other religious places in the state. Patil met the saints, mahants and activists, who are on a fast in Shirdi in support of this demand.

All activities had come to a halt for several months due to the spread of the virus. But, slowly, everything was resuming, Patil said. The Warkari sect had called off the Ashadi pilgrimage, a tradition that goes back thousands of years. But the state government's decision not to allow the opening of temples when all transactions were now underway was incomprehensible, Patil said in the statement.

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