The symbol of Jainism, the Jain Prateek Chihna
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zone of influence
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Formation | January 1, 1894 |
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Type | Jain religious organisation |
Purpose | Religious, Educational, Non Profit, Charitable |
Headquarters | Lucknow, New Delhi, Mumbai India |
Region served
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India |
Official language
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Hindi and English |
Secretary General
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Prakash Chand Badjatya |
Chairman of the Board
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Nirmal Kumar Jain Sethi |
Key people
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Various Jains |
Main organ
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Board of directors |
Affiliations | Various Jain organisations |
Website | digjainmahasabha |
Remarks | Oldest organisation of lay Jains |
Digambar Jain Mahasabha is the oldest organisation of lay Jains in India.
The Digambar Jain Mahasabha was founded in 1894 in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. It is considered a traditionalist organisation. Its two main branches are Dharm Sanrakshini Mahasabha and Teerth Sanrakshini Mahasabha.
The first President of The Digambar Jain Mahasabha was Laxmandas Tongya. In 1941, the leadership of the Mahasabha was handed over by Seth Hukumchand of Indore to Bhagchand Soni at the Shravanabelagola convention. Later leaders included Rajkumar Singh, Bhanvarilala Bakliwal, Raisahab Chandmal Pandya, and Likhamichand Chhabra. The present leader is Nirmal Kumar Jain Sethi, who has been in office since 1981 and is now the longest serving president in the history of the organisation. Raj Kumar Sethi, son of late Phulchand Sethi is the working president of the organisation. Binod Sethi, son of late Phulchand Sethi, of Dimapur is the Vice-President of the Teerth Sanrakshini Mahasabha
Jain Gazette, a weekly publication of Dharm Sanrakshini Mahasabha, has been published regularly for the last 103 years. It claims to be the oldest Jain periodical in the world.