Jammu: The Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), headed by Jammu & Kashmir Governor, Lt. Gen. (retd.) S.K Sinha, has denied reports that there has been any tampering of the ice Shivalingam at the cave shrine. There was no question of playing with the religious sentiments of devotees. This follows reports that the ice Shivalingam this time was "man-made."

A Board spokesperson said that prior to the commencement of the annual yatra this year, complaints about "piling of snow flakes" and applying of vermillion, etc., on the lingam had been received. Immediately, the grill at the sanctum sanctorum was raised and the side entrance closed to prevent people from moving near the deities.

The spokesman said that "as per routine a team of Board officials visited the cave in the second week of May and found that the lingam had not formed though the formation of Parvati and Ganesha had taken place five feet from the Shivalingam.

The Board sent a team of High Altitude Warfare School on May 14 to inspect the track and surroundings of the cave.It was found that the cave-top was totally free of snow and that the glacier cover thereon had receded by 100 metres or so. The Shivalingam site was found to be dry. Another team of the Snow and Avalanche Studies Establishment was sent on May 18 to look into the possible causes."

A Board meeting was convened on May 30 to apprise its members of the issue and one of the members, Mahant Deependra Giri, had stated that this was not something unusual as it happened once in 12 years or so. The absence or small formation of the lingam was not a new phenomenon.

Strongly denying reports that it had tampered with the ice lingam, the spokesman said: "Had it been its intention then perhaps the Shivalingam of the original form and size could have been put in place. Who else knows better about size and shape of the lingam than the Board,'' he asked.However, the piling of some snow over the lingam by someone could not be prevented as the shrine remained unguarded for over 10 months.

Mahant Deependra Giri, the custodian of the shrine, has demanded a judicial probe into "the making of the lingam" by a sitting Supreme Court Judge.

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