Dispute Erupts Over Varanasi's Masan Holi: Organizers Accuse Kashi Vidvat Parishad of Conspiracy

• A dispute has erupted over Varanasi's Masan Holi at Mahashmashan Manikarnika Ghat, where Holi is played with pyre ashes.
• Kashi Vidvat Parishad calls the tradition unscriptural, while organizers claim it's centuries old and now world-renowned.
• Organizer Gulshan Kapoor alleges a conspiracy by a few individuals, not from Kashi, to defame the event.
• He states that Lord Shiva's ganas (tantrics and Aghoris) have always played Holi here, with Baba Vishwanath participating invisibly.
• Vidvat Parishad scholar Pandit Vinay Pandey argues the event is a recent trend, not ancient, and tarnishes Kashi's dignity.