Zillar Barta Desk,Varanasi : Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma visited the revered Kaal Bhairav Temple in Varanasi on Wednesday evening and offered prayers before proceeding to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. The visit came after their participation in a public programme in the city.
The two chief ministers reached the historic Kaal Bhairav Temple, widely revered as the guardian deity of Kashi, where they performed darshan and participated in the temple rituals and aarti. They subsequently proceeded to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, where they offered prayers and performed jalabhishek in the sanctum.
During their temple visit, Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma prayed for the peace, prosperity and welfare of the country. Their visit to the two prominent shrines of Varanasi formed part of their engagements in Kashi on Wednesday.
The Kaal Bhairav Temple holds a distinctive place in the religious traditions of Varanasi. Kaal Bhairav is traditionally regarded as the Kotwal, or guardian, of Kashi, and devotees visiting the holy city often consider seeking his blessings an important part of their pilgrimage. The temple is dedicated to a fierce manifestation of Lord Shiva and attracts devotees throughout the year.
The visit also followed a major political and organisational programme in Varanasi involving BJP national president Nitin Nabin, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The leaders shared the stage at a public meeting connected with the conclusion of the Seva Sankalp Bike Yatra, which travelled from Vadnagar to Kashi.
The yatra began on September 17 and was organised in connection with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday and the completion of 25 years of his public service. Participants were involved in various activities during the journey, including cleanliness drives, tree plantation programmes and blood donation initiatives. The concluding programme was held in Varanasi on Wednesday.
Ahead of the concluding programme, participants of the bike yatra also visited the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. A group of women carrying ceremonial kalash reportedly led the procession, with water brought from the Vadnagar region for offering during the jalabhishek.
After the public programme, Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma visited the temples together. At Kaal Bhairav Temple, the leaders offered prayers and participated in the religious rituals. Reports said that while returning from the temple, Yogi Adityanath also interacted with children present along the route and distributed chocolates to them.
The joint temple visit highlighted the religious significance of Kashi, one of India's most prominent pilgrimage destinations. The Kaal Bhairav shrine, in particular, is associated with the traditional belief that the deity protects and watches over the sacred city. The temple's long-standing religious importance makes it a regular destination for political leaders, public figures and pilgrims visiting Varanasi.
The leaders' visit to Kaal Bhairav and Kashi Vishwanath also came at the end of a day of political and organisational activities in Varanasi. The presence of the Uttar Pradesh and Assam chief ministers alongside the BJP's national leadership gave the day's programme a broader organisational significance, while their temple visits added a religious dimension to their stay in Kashi.
The events in Varanasi concluded the Seva Sankalp Yatra programme in the city, with the participating leaders emphasising public service and organisational outreach. The simultaneous culmination of related programmes in Varanasi and Vadnagar marked an important moment in the BJP's celebrations surrounding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 25 years in public service.
Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma's visit to the Kaal Bhairav Temple therefore combined the religious traditions of Kashi with their scheduled public and political engagements in the city. Their subsequent prayers at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple brought their Varanasi visit to a close on Wednesday evening.
