Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of damaging the Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi in the name of beautification and renovation. ADVERTISEMENT"In the name of beautification and commercialisation, Prime Minister Modi has ordered bulldozers to demolish centuries-old religious, cultural, and spiritual heritage at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi," Kharge said in Hindi in a post on X. You have handed over water, forests, and mountains to them, and now it's the turn of our cultural heritage," Kharge alleged. Why were the centuries-old statues at Manikarnika Ghat destroyed and reduced to rubble, he asked. The redevelopment of Manikarnika Ghat, where around 150 cremations are conducted daily, was launched recently with the objective of modernising the historic site.

Source: The Telegraph January 15, 2026 07:48 UTC