What’s your problem if we have a Jagannath Dham?: Mamata Banerjee to BJP

Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee targeted the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Odisha on Monday alleging that she has been falsely accused of using neem wood stolen from the Jagannath temple in Puri to make the idols at the recently inaugurated Jagannath temple in East Midnapore district’s Digha.

Banerjee also alleged that migrant workers from her state are being singled out for speaking Bengali and assaulted in BJP-ruled states.

“What is your problem if we, too, have a Jagannath Dham of our own? You stay well and let Bengal stay well. Why are you assaulting our people. I have information that whoever speaks Bengali is being assaulted in Odisha. This has happened in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar as well,” the chief minister said in the same breath.

“We don’t want any misunderstanding with anyone. I appeal to the governments of Odisha, Bihar and Rajasthan. Our chief secretary is writing today to the chief secretary of Odisha. Our director general of police has possibly talked to his counterpart in Odisha. May wisdom dawn on you,” said Banerjee.

“Nobody raises questions when Mamata Banerjee builds skywalks at Dakshineswar and Kalighat temple or worships Kali or Durga. But the Jagannath Dham seems to have hit the wrong nerve. I am being accused of stealing a neem tree. There are four neem trees at my home. Ask them how many they want. We don’t need to steal things,” Banerjee said in Murshidabad district during a tour of the areas where anti-Waqf law agitations triggered communal violence last month.

Considered auspicious in Hindu religion, wood from neem (Azadirachta Indica) tree was used to make the idols of Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra at the ancient Puri temple. The Odisha government recently ordered an inquiry following allegations that neem wood preserved at the temple was stolen and brought to Digha to make the idols in Digha where Banerjee oversaw the consecration ceremony on April 30. The consecration was supervised by Rajesh Daitapati (servitor), one of the priests from the Puri temple.

Although built by the Bengal government as a cultural centre at a cost of around ₹250 crore, the structure at Digha is a replica of the Puri temple located 344 km to the south-west along the Bay of Bengal coastline.

Since the Puri temple has been worshipped for centuries by Hindus as one of the Char Dhams (four abodes) of Lord Vishnu - the other three are at Badrinath, Dwarka and Rameswaram - BJP has objected to Banerjee referring to the Digha temple as a Dham.

“It is thieves who make the most noise. If you support Hindu dharma (religion) then you should know that Mamata Banerjee’s condition is not so poor that she has to steal neem wood for Jagannath Dham. We already had the marble idols. Jagannath idols can be bought as well. I have one at my home. It (the wood) was brought by the Daitapati but not from where they are alleging,” she said.

“I heard he (Rajesh Daitapati) was summoned yesterday. He told them that he brought the wood from somewhere else. He was asked why he came here to perform the puja. A notification has been issued saying nobody should perform puja at Jagannath Dham (in Digha),” said Banerjee.

“Why is this agitating you so much? When I visit Puri, RSS and BJP hold demonstrations. Aren’t you ashamed of that? Why are you so jealous about the (Digha) Jagannath Dham? Have you forgotten that when you (Odisha) run out of power Bengal supplies it. When cyclones destroy your electrical lines, you ask for engineers. We are affected too by such calamities, but we still send engineers. Most tourists who visit Puri during Rath Yatra are Bengalis,” said Banerjee.

“You are torturing migrant workers who speak Bengali. We won’t do any such thing. This is the difference between you and us. There are 15 million people from other states who work here. They represent all religions and castes. Don’t encourage some people. We may not do anything, but some will, because jealousy has no cure. These people will threaten them (the migrant workers) in the garb of some organisation. Why should I take responsibility for such consequences?” Banerjee said.

Challenging Banerjee’s allegations, Bengal BJP said nobody stopped her from practising Hinduism, but at the same time nobody gave her the right to use taxpayers’ money to build a cultural centre and call it a Dham.

“Mamata Banerjee is free to practise Hinduism. Nobody is stopping her. We are asking who gave her the right to use taxpayers’ money to build a cultural centre and call it a Dham. She is hurting the sentiments of millions of Hindus to whom a Dham is a sacred entity. Her temple is a cultural centre built by HIDCO (West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation). Who is she trying to fool?” Bengal BJP’s chief spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya told HT.

“As far as her allegation of assault on migrant workers is concerned, most of the incidents are happening in Tamil Nadu where the police have arrested Bangladeshi Muslims posing as Indian citizens with identity documents procured in Bengal,” Bhattacharya added.