Significantly, two key Hindu religious leaders—Puri Shankaracharya Swami Adhokshjanand Devtirath and Dwarka Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati—have also came out against Modi contesting from Varanasi.
Modi is pitted against AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal and Congress candidate Ajay Rai, among others, in the temple town where election will be held on May 12.
Terming Varanasi a confluence of various religious beliefs and symbol of India's core values, Acharya accused Modi and BJP of trying to exploit electoral gain by taking a “narrow view” of the city that it was a nerve centre of Hindu tradition.
“It is a nerve centre of various religions, traditions and ideologies. Kabir had made the city a centre of Indian civilisation. Buddha had come here 2,500 years ago.
It is an important place for people belonging to Jain faith,” Acharya said.
