ALLAHABAD: Reiterating the apex body’s stand on granting recognition to seers belonging to the third gender, the president of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) Narendra Giri said that the Kinnar Akhara won’t be granted recognition as the 14th member of the body but any saint of the latter was free to join an akhara.“We have said this earlier too and are reiterating the same. We have decided that ABAP would welcome any member from the Kinnar akhara into any of the 13 akharas. We expect them to perform all duties and rituals observed by other saints,” said president of ABAP Narendra Giri.Talking to TOI over phone on Saturday, chief priest of Kinnar akhara Mahamandleshwar Laxmi Narayan Tripathi, said, “The parishad is acting like the British by following the policy of ‘divide and rule’ for the Kinnar community. They don’t know that a ‘Kinnar’ is equivalent to a‘devta’ (deity). How can we be included as a sadhu?.”“We are a different clan. Neither do we not want to be included in any of the existing akharas nor does the sanatan Hindu dharma permits so,” he added. “We have started making preparations to enter Allahabad during the Kumbh Mela in a grand way, which would be much more impressive than the Kumbh Mela organised in Ujjain in 2016,” Tripathi added.Meanwhile, the Kinnar akhara will convene an important meeting in Allahabad on September 10. “We will be meeting in Allahabad to discuss several issues related to the society and the transgenders and their problems,” Tripathi added.

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