Uttarakhand's Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj, who was absent from when the portals of Badrinath were opened today, said he could not be part of the occasion as he had gone to offer prayers to Latu Devta.
Important political figures attend the ceremonial opening of Badrinath and Kedarnath shrines and it has been an old tradition. However, no minister turned up at Badrinath whose portals were opened at 4.30 am today.
Maharaj asked the media not to read political meaning into his absence from the ceremony, saying he had no grouse with the state government.
He said he had vowed to pay obeisance to Latu Devta, brother of Goddess Nanda Devi, as he had failed to do that last year despite his best efforts.
"I had gone to fulfil a commitment I had made to myself last year and that is the only reason behind my absernce from Badrinath," he said.
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