Devotee who arrived with pet dog to Kedarnath gets booked following massive backlash

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As the Uttarakhand administration battles to keep pilgrims at the Char Dham temples under control in the midst of an unprecedented influx this year, YouTubers and vloggers making videos there have become an added challenge. Following the widespread success of a video of one such vlogger who took his Husky to the Kedarnath shrine and had a priest put on a vermillion tilak to it, the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) is now considering action against YouTubers and vloggers at the Char Dham shrines. A man with a rucksack can be seen in the reel propping up his dog so that its paws might touch the statue of 'Nandi' in front of the Kedarnath shrine. He then has a priest apply a tilak on the dog before the ceremony. He then has a priest put a tilak to the dog before leading it up to the shrine as a devotional song is playing in the background. Members of the BKTC stated that this is not an isolated incident and that they have received complaints from overzealous bloggers filming films and reels in front of the shrine "that have nothing to do with devotion." BKTC president Ajendra Ajay told media that the event was " highly objectionable and completely breaches the sanctity of the Kedarnath temple”. Ajay stated that he has written to the Rudraprayag district administration requesting that the man in the video be identified and harsh action taken against him. He also stated that the priest community was considering methods to limit such actions "to stop the shrines from turning into picnic spots”. “In fact, last year, the BKTC had issued an order saying anyone shooting videos or songs at the Badrinath or Kedarnath shrine, or any of the other 46 shrines that fall under BKTC’s jurisdiction, would need its permission first,” Ajay said. “Crores of people have faith in Baba Kedarnath, their sentiments are hurt by such activities by YouTubers and vloggers.