Shankaracharya Swaroopananda expresses reservations on affidavit

New Delhi, Sep 15 (UNI) Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopananda Saraswati, who heads the two peeths at Dwaraka in Gujarat and Badarikashrama in Uttarakhand, has conveyed his reservations to the Centre on certain issues on its stand on the Sethusamudram canal project.

The reservations were expressed by the seer during a meeting with Home Minister Shivraj Patil yesterday, Pt N K Sharma, advisor to former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao, today said.

''During his meeting with the Home Minister, the Shankaracharya had expressed his unhappiness over certain issues in the Government's Setusamudram project,'' he said.

The seer also discussed various aspects of the project, which were in the throes of a controversy in the wake of the affidavit filed by the Centre in the Supreme Court.

Pt Sharma, who was also present at the meeting, said the Home Minister assured Swami Swaroopananda Saraswati that the affidavit was not meant to hurt anyone's sentiments.

The affidavit was yesterday withdrawn by the Centre in the face of objections from some quarters.

UNI