Politics and Faith Collide in India’s Temple Rivalry

SHUMAILA ASLAM
Scandinavian News Agency
Bureau Chief Pakistan


In India, a new temple project has sparked tensions with one of Hinduism’s most revered shrines, the Jagannath temple in Puri.

On June 27, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched the state’s first government-sponsored Rath Yatra in Digha to celebrate a sprawling new temple complex dedicated to Lord Jagannath.

The move has been pitched by Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress (TMC) as West Bengal’s answer to the historic Jagannath temple in neighbouring Odisha’s Puri, which dates back to the 12th century and hosts an 800-year-old annual chariot festival.

Traditionally, descendants of Puri’s royal family sweep the chariot path, but in Digha, the task was performed by Banerjee herself highlighting the mix of politics and religion ahead of next year’s state elections.

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