A five-decade-old Janmashtami Puja tradition in Kolkata's Mominpur area is set for a major change, as a local BJP leader restructured it to place the organisation and conduct of the Hindu festival entirely in the hands of Hindu members. Earlier, the committee had more Muslim members than Hindu members.
The BJP leader Rakesh Singh feels that during Hindu festivals, Muslims have been given top priority. Singh cites the example of Firhad Hakim, the Kolkata Port MLA, whose constituency includes the Mominpur. Hakim, a former Kolkata mayor, was also a member of Hindu puja and temple committees outside his constituency. “Hindus will do their puja as they believe. We are not interfering in other religions, be it Islam or Christianity, but we won’t allow them to come into our domain,” said Rakesh Singh.
The BJP leader had contested against Hakim and lost, but still commands influence in the area after the saffron party came to power. Singh says Muslims can partake in Hindu festivities at their homes, but will not be allowed to be committee members within the Kolkata Port Trust area. He pointed out that of the 18 committee members, 16 were Muslims and said that they have now been replaced.
The rationale behind the decision is that the Muslim committee members were merely taking part in the celebrations and not in the sacred religious aspects of the festivities. “Mamata Banerjee used to say festivals are for everyone. These double standards are unacceptable,” he said, adding, “Our religion, our puja and our festival should be respected, and its religious aspects should remain within the Hindu community.”
A committee member who has been removed said that they would not celebrate the festival and would instead go wherever they are invited. The puja was started by a Muslim named Mohammad Kashim 58 years ago and revived in 2011 after the Trinamool Congress (TMC) came to power in West Bengal.
Singh is not part of the committee but has influence in the area.
“When Lord Krishna existed, there were no Hindus or Muslims when people started worshipping him. Our ancestors were also devotees. We are in India, hence we should celebrate Indian festivals. No one can stop us from celebrating a festival in our land or home,” said Mohammad Alam, a former committee member, adding that they would not fight over the issue as long as the puja was conducted well.
“There should be no politics in puja. It should be done from the heart, with respect for Lord Krishna.”
Alam also argued that ultimately, when someone is in trouble in the area, it is locals like him who would come to their aid, and not a political leader.
This comes after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) reportedly appealed a few days ago for non-vegetarian food not to be permitted inside puja pandals in order to maintain the sanctity of the festival. The VHP has now clarified its stand, stating that ahead of the elections, a false narrative was being spread that people would have to stop eating fish if the BJP came to power. It said its latest appeal was merely aimed at maintaining the religious sanctity of Durga Puja inside the pandal and had nothing to do with what people eat.
“We held a meeting and decided that puja should be done in a pure manner and the spiritual aspect should be maintained by a Hindu. We did not discuss what should be eaten and what should not be eaten. This is a rumour,” said Amiya Sarkar of the VHP.
