Why civilised dress must only for devotees not priests Desai

    Pune, Dec 2 (PTI) Against the backdrop of the Shirdi
Saibaba temple trust's appeal to devotees be dressed in a
"civilised manner, social activist Trupti Desai has asked why
there are different yardsticks for devotees and priests.
    In a video message on Tuesday evening, Desai said the
temple trust's move to put up such boards for devotees is an
insult to the freedom of expression given by the Constitution.
    Desai also warned that if the boards are not removed,
she and other activists will go to Shirdi in Maharashtra's
Ahmedanagar district to remove them.
    The Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust's Chief Executive
Officer Kanhuraj Bagate on Tuesday said the trust has just
made an appeal to the devotees coming to offer prayers at the
shrine, and they have not imposed any dress code on them.
    He said the appeal was made after devotees complained
that some people come to the shrine in "objectionable" attire.
    Reacting to it, Desai said, "The priests in temples
are half-naked, but no devotee has raised any objection to it.
The boards should be removed at the earliest, or else we will
have to come to Shirdi to remove them."
    She said devotees of different castes, religions and
faith come to Shirdi from across the country and the world.
    "In India, the Constitution has given the freedom of
speech to its citizens and as per that right, it is one's
personal choice what to speak and what to wear," she said.
    All devotees are aware of how to be dressed when they
visit a place of worship, Desai said.
    "In fact, one cannot judge a devotee with what attire
he or she is wearing. One's faith is important," she added.
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)