Asaduddin Owaisi tweets to PMO over berth for Lord Shiva in Kashi-Mahakal Express

A row has erupted over the Kashi Mahakal Express reserving a seat for a Lord Shiva with AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi questioning the move to allot berth for a mini-temple in the train. Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday tweeted a photo of Premable of the Constitution the Prime Minister Office tagging a report of the temple on wheels. Owaisi's tweet came a day after the Kashi Mahakal Express was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi -- with a seat turned into a mini-temple devoted to Lord Shiva the railway authorities. Seat number 64 in coach B5 was reserved and left vacant for the deity, Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar told PTI.

Sir @PMOIndia https://t.co/HCeC9QcfW9 pic.twitter.com/6SMJXw3q1N

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) February 17, 2020

  "It's for the first time that a seat has been reserved and left vacant for the deity Lord Shiva. Even a temple has been drawn on the seat to make people aware that the seat is reserved for the Lord Mahakal in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain," Kumar had said. Light devotional music, two dedicated private guards in every coach and only vegetarian meals will be some of the new features of the fully 3-AC service that will run thrice a week between Varanasi and Indore. WHAT HAVE THE RAILWAYS AUTHORITIES SAY The Railways authorities had told PTI on Sunday that they are mulling if they should make a reserved seat for the "Bhole Baba" a permanent feature of the train, which will connect three Jyotirlingas -- Omkareshwar near Indore, Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain and Kashi Vishwanath. Offering prayers at the seat on auspicious days and occasions are also being considered. Kumar, however, said a decision whether to make this a permanent fixture of the train is yet to be taken. THE KASHI MAHAKAL EXPRESS The Kashi Mahakal Express connects Omkareshwar (near Indore), Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain) and Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi) Jyotirlingas. The train was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 16 from the Varanasi junction and will start plying regularly from February 20. The national transporter launched its third IRCTC-operated service, the PSU's third corporate train, from Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi to Indore in Madhya Pradesh and has named it Kashi Mahakal Express. The train will cover 1,131 km between Varanasi and Indore via Lucknow and a distance of 1,102 km between Varanasi and Indore via Prayagraj (Allahabad) in approximately 19 hours. Source: India Today