How West Bengal's Durga Puja pandals mirrored regime change in the state

With the change of government in West Bengal came the change in big Durga Puja pandal committees now run primarily by BJP representatives. The message the saffron party wants to send out is that Durga Puja celebrations are for everyone, and that each pandal does not represent one person.

Big Puja pandal committees were run by leaders and ministers over 15 years of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) regime. Today, these same committees have made way for BJP leaders and representatives.

The man behind Sreebhumi Puja Pandal in Lake Town was former Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose, who is currently behind bars.

Today, the pandal committee is run by other BJP representatives who say the Puja is about celebrating as a community and not just about glorifying one person.

“Earlier one man used to organise the Puja. People wondered whether there would be celebrations here after he went to jail. We organised it keeping everyone together, and have seen footfalls in lakhs,” said Kanak Dutta, Secretary, Sreebhumi Puja Pandal Committee. The theme of the pandal is to replicate Jaipur’s Hawa Mahal.

The Chetla Agrani Club Durga Puja in Chetla was organised by former Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim. Currently, Hakim has switched sides to the Ritabrata Banerjee faction of TMC. The pandal largely has former committee members but is no longer known primarily as Hakim's Puja pandal.

“It is a locality Puja. The committee has not changed and includes the same people who were involved previously too. We are taking everyone with us and together organising the Puja,” said Suvendu Samanta, Secretary, Chetla Agrani Puja Pandal. The theme of the pandal is Lord Krishna in his cosmic form.

The Tridhara Samilini Puja pandal in Triangular Park was known as former TMC MLA Debashish Kumar’s Puja. Kumar too switched sides to the Ritabrata faction. Whilst Kumar is an integral part of the Puja committee, it is no longer is solely known as his Puja. The pandal is built out of discarded pens and the theme is ‘Sur Asur’, the battle between good and bad.

Former Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Arup Biswas was the main man behind the show at Suruchi Sangha in New Alipore. Today, the president of the committee is BJP MLA Sourav Sikdar.

Sikdar, however, believes that it is not a one-man show, but a community Puja, that is the essence of Durga Puja, and that the focus should first be about following exact religious customs then celebrations.

“In the earlier regime, Durga Puja pandals and Maa Durga’s idols were inaugurated during Pitra Paksha (where Hindus pay homage to ancestors), which is anti-Sanatani and against our rituals. We made it about Durga Puja, then celebrations. At Suruchi Sangha, we are maintaining all rituals as per Puja,” said Sourav Sikdar.

The theme of the pandal pertains to the life of Dr Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, the founder of the saffron party.

“We are portraying the life of Dr Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, incidents in his life which the new generation should know about and those who know about him should recall memories of him on his 150th year birth centenary,” added Sikdar.

Political colours change, themes change, but for the people of West Bengal, Durga Puja remains an opportunity to dress up in new clothes and witness the various themes as pandal hopping takes centre stage.