HARIDWAR: In a significant development, Gurukul Mahavidyalaya, a prestigious institution founded in 1907 by Swami Darshananand, a renowned Arya Samaj leader, is set to be merged with Swami Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth. The merger "aims to put an end to the prolonged internal battles for control over the management of the Gurukul, both within and outside the courts".
The Gurukul, which had a glorious past and was responsible for shaping the careers of numerous politicians, social workers, authors, journalists, and accomplished individuals across various fields, "witnessed a decline due to factionalism and infighting".
Hari Gopal Shastri, the former kulpati of the Gurukul, lamented the decline, saying, "The institution, which was established on a sprawling 350-bigha land, had once flourished, but it became entangled in caste politics and factionalism, with various groups vying for its land worth several hundred crores of rupees." Notable alumni of the Gurukul include Padma Shri Kapil Dev Dwivedi (scholar), Padma Shri Kshem Chandra Suman (poet), Vedatirth Nardev Shastri (scholar and politician), Vedatirth Hari Dutt Shastri (scholar), Prakash Vir Shastri, Shiv Kumar, and Thakur Yash Pal Singh (parliamentarians), Udai Vir Shastri (former education minister of Rajasthan), and Bhawani Lal Bharatiya (social worker), among others.
