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BAPS executive meeting discusses attack on Akshardham

At the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha headquarters in Metuchen, New Jersey, an executive meeting was organised on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the terrorist act on the Akshardham Temple in Gandhinagar.

As BAPS branches awaited orders from New Jersey, a fax from Pramukh Swami Maharaj was received in the offices of several temples across the country.

The Maharaj made an appeal to 'maintain peace and unity' in the light of what he called a 'national tragedy.'

"[Pramukh] Swami's message essentially instructed us that this is what we have to do," said Sanjiv Bhatt, a volunteer at the temple in New Jersey.

According to Bhatt, people across the state and the country are still in 'sheer shock.' The course of action decided upon during the meeting was holding of 'prarthna sabhas' or prayer meetings in all the temples.

It was also decided that the gates of the temples, which always remain open, will be closed for the next few days.

"It is a very bad feeling for us," said C V Jyotishi on his way to the Atlanta temple to participate in the 'peace prayer.' "The whole world needs to get united behind one good thought -- that this should stop. The way things are, it is scary," said Jyotishi who is the chairman of the board of directors of the Brahmin Samaj in Georgia.

Jyotishi said the Indian community in the US will do its best to help the victims by giving donations and food. "But that is not enough for the pain in their hearts," he said. "When something happens in Gujarat, the rest of the country does not really react. Unfortunately, that has made terrorism a statewide problem and not a nationwide problem like it should be. And that is not good news for national unity. It is time that people take charge in this situation."

The Temple Attack: Complete Coverage
The Swaminarayan sect

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