• Long weekend triggers huge rush; Rs. 2,000 special ticket holders wait nearly two hours for darshan
• Bus services stopped at 7.30 pm instead of 8 pm; temple remains open till midnight to clear rush

Mysuru: The second Ashada Friday yesterday witnessed around 1.50 lakh devotees visiting the Sri Chamundeshwari Temple atop the Chamundi Hill.

The huge rush was attributed to the long weekend, as today is the fourth Saturday, an official Government holiday, followed by Sunday. While the number of devotees remained moderate during the day, it increased significantly in the evening. As a result of the heavy rush, devotees had to wait for several hours for the darshan of the deity.

Those in the general queue waited for at least four to five hours, while devotees with Rs. 2,000 special darshan tickets (which assured speedy darshan) had to wait for about one-and-a-half to two hours.

Priority to VIPs

The delay was also due to VIP movement, during which the queues were halted until the VIPs completed their visit.

Several devotees expressed their displeasure at the authorities for giving priority to VIPs while the general public, including those who had paid for special darshan tickets, were made to wait.

Later, many devotees took to social media to voice their frustration. They alleged that while VIPs were allowed entry even beyond the stipulated visiting hours of 5.30 am to 9.30 am, those who had purchased Rs. 2,000 special darshan tickets were forced to wait for several hours.

They claimed that despite the authorities promising quick darshan, they had to wait for nearly six hours before entering the Temple.

To prevent overcrowding atop the Hill, the authorities closed entry at the foothill at 5 pm. Devotees carrying recommendation letters who arrived in the evening were stopped by the Police at Sangolli Rayanna Circle (Kurubarahalli Circle), as the allotted time for such entries had already ended.

Owing to the heavy rush, the temple, which normally closes at 10 pm, remained open until midnight to facilitate darshan.

KSRTC buses were kept stationed atop the Hill to ferry devotees back to the Shashiranjan Grounds. While most devotees returned after darshan, some stayed back atop the Hill overnight and left early this morning.

Devotees disappointed

Meanwhile, devotees waiting at the Shashiranjan Grounds to board buses to the Hill expressed their disappointment after they were not permitted to proceed to the temple. As every week, the authorities had arranged free bus services from Shashiranjan Grounds near Hotel Lalitha Mahal Palace from 6 am to 8 pm. However, both the bus service and the special darshan ticket counter were closed at 7.30 pm as part of crowd-control measures.

Devotees waiting for the buses said, officials informed them that the service had been suspended because thousands of devotees were already waiting atop the Hill for darshan and allowing more people would worsen the situation.

Despite the officials expressing their inability to accommodate them, devotees continued to insist on being allowed to  visit the temple.

Later, Police personnel at the Shashiranjan Grounds persuaded the officials to permit only those already standing in the queue to board the buses. The Police then barricaded the area and prevented any additional devotees from entering.

‘Unprecedented crowd’

The entrance to the sanctum sanctorum is only three feet wide and devotees from the VIP, special and general darshan queues converge at that point. We can allow only about 500 devotees at a time through the entrance. As the turnout yesterday was unprecedented, the darshan process took longer than usual.

—M.J. Roopa, Secretary, Sri Chamundeshwari Temple Development Authority