Jain Muni Tarun Sagar died on Saturday morning at his house in Delhi’s Krishna Nagar area of Shahdara. He was 51.
After being diagnosed with jaundice recently, the jain monk had to be admitted in a hospital. He will be cremated at the Tarun Sagar Tirth on the Delhi-Meerut highway at 3 PM today.
Some reports said that he had refused to take medicines and instead chosen to go to a jain temple in Krishna Nagar.
Tributes have poured in for him as Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “Deeply pained by the untimely demise of Muni Tarun Sagar Ji Maharaj. We will always remember him for his rich ideals, compassion and contribution to society. His noble teachings will continue inspiring people. My thoughts are with the Jain community and his countless disciples.”
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, “Pained to hear the sad demise of Muni Tarun Sagar Ji Maharaj. His teachings and ideals will always inspire humanity.”
BJP President Amit Shah wrote, “Saddened to learn about the untimely demise of Muni Tarun Sagar ji Maharaj. He had devoted his entire life for the welfare of the society. In him, we have lost a noble preacher of peace and humanity. My deepest condolences with his countless followers in this hour of grief.”
Tarun Sagar had kicked up a huge political storm in 2016 after he was invited to speak inside the Haryana assembly by the BJP government. Many liberals had opposed the move saying that this made a mockery of the democracy after he was made to sit at an elevated seat above the elected representatives.
Among those who opposed was music director, Vishal Dadlani, whose criticism for the Jain monk had landed him in deep trouble as cases began to be filed against him for hurting the religious sentiments. Dadlani had come under sharp criticism from several quarters including Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal for his sarcastic tweet
After a barrage of criticism, Dadlani had tendered an apology for his tweet and also deleted it.
Tarun Sagar, too has been known for controversial statements. In May 2015, he had kicked up a massive row by his comments on Love Jihad. Describing Love Jihad an attempt to convert Hindus of India to Islam, he had gone on to add that India was in danger of becoming Pakistan if the law enforcing agencies did not stop this immediately.