The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Saturday mounted a sharp attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the ongoing controversy surrounding the newly inaugurated Jagannath Temple in Digha, accusing the saffron party of 'hypocrisy' in its proclaimed commitment to Hindutva.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata, TMC leader Jay Prakash Majumdar denounced the BJP for objecting to the temple being named ‘Jagannath Dham’, a title traditionally associated with the 12th-century temple in Puri, Odisha.
“The BJP is in power in Odisha. The question was raised by one of the BJP leaders... If they question the establishment of a Hindu Mandir, this shows their desperation,” Majumdar remarked.
Pointing to what he called a contradiction in the BJP’s ideology, Majumdar added, “On one hand, the BJP claims to be a ‘Hinduwadi’ party, and on the other hand, they are raising questions on the Pratishtha of the temple (Digha Jagannath temple)... They should look into the ethics of their party.”
He insisted that religious concerns should not be politicised and, if there were genuine questions about the temple’s consecration, they ought to be raised by the four Shankaracharyas, rather than political actors.
“If there is any question on the establishment, then it should be asked by the four Shankaracharyas,” he added.
The temple row escalated after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the Rs 250-crore shrine on 30 April. The temple, sprawling across 20 acres in the coastal town of Digha, is architecturally modelled on the famed Puri shrine and enshrines the same deities. However, critics in Odisha, especially from the BJP, expressed concern over the use of the name ‘Jagannath Dham’, asserting that it could mislead devotees and dilute the significance of the Puri temple.
On Saturday, Odisha Minister Prithviraj Harichandan penned a letter to Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Chief Administrator of the Shree Jagannath Temple, seeking an internal probe into several aspects — including the nomenclature of the Digha temple, the involvement of Puri Temple servitors in its consecration, and the use of “Daru Katha” (sacred timber narrative) in idol construction.
The minister contended that these developments have hurt the religious sentiments of devotees of Lord Jagannath and the people of Odisha.
Echoing the BJP's criticism, West Bengal BJP President and Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar accused Chief Minister Banerjee of exploiting religious sentiments for political gain.
“Mamata Banerjee is trying to win the upcoming state Assembly elections by climbing on the shoulders of Lord Jagannath,” he alleged.
Prominent sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik also urged the West Bengal Chief Minister to withdraw the ‘Dham’ reference in the temple’s name, suggesting that such nomenclature created confusion among devotees.
Despite the row, the Digha Jagannath temple — a massive new addition to Bengal’s religious landscape — remains a centrepiece of the State government’s efforts to promote the coastal town as a spiritual and tourist hub.
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