Bhubaneswar: The participation of officials of the Indian High Commission in Kenya in an ISKCON-organised Rath Yatra recently has sparked resentment among devotees of Lord Jagannath in Odisha Saturday.
Padma Shri awardee and sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik urged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to advise Indian ambassadors and diplomats to participate only in Rath Yatra celebrations held in accordance with the dates and rituals followed by the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri.
In a post on X, Pattnaik, a former member of the Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee (SJTMC), alleged that the off-schedule celebration had hurt the religious sentiments of crores of Lord Jagannath devotees.
He also expressed concern over the participation of officials of the Indian High Commission in Kenya, who reportedly pulled the chariot during the procession and shared posts about the event on the mission’s official social media accounts.
“Kindly advise Indian embassies and high commissions to give due consideration to the traditional rituals of Shree Jagannath Temple, Puri, before associating with such events. This concerns the religious sentiments of millions of Mahaprabhu Shree Jagannath devotees worldwide,” Pattnaik said in a social media post tagging Jaishankar.
He maintained that the Rath Yatra is an integral part of the centuries-old Jagannath tradition and should be observed in accordance with the prescribed religious calendar.
Meanwhile, Puri’s titular king Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb said the SJTMC would seek the Centre’s intervention after ISKCON declined its request to hold overseas Rath Yatra celebrations in accordance with the dates prescribed by the temple traditions.
Deb said he had written to the new ISKCON chairman July 4 and received a reply July 7 stating that the organisation would continue to hold Rath Yatra celebrations outside India on dates decided by it.
Deb said the SJTMC has now decided to seek the Centre’s intervention after consulting the Odisha government.
“Jagannath Temple Managing Committee, in consultation with the state government, is set to bring the matter to the notice of the Union government,” he said, adding that a delegation of the Puri temple will visit Delhi after the Rath Yatra festival to seek the Centre’s intervention.
