BJP govt deliberately delayed Rath Yatra for Adani family: Congress

New Delhi: The BJP government of Odisha deliberately delayed pulling of the chariots of Lord Jagannath and his siblings in Puri on Friday to allow the family of industrialist Gautam Adani- who is widely seen as a close acquaintance of the saffron party- to participate in the chariot pulling, the opposition in the State alleged, according to a The Telegraph report.

Telegraph reported that the state Congress leader Prasad Harichandan said that the state administration was present at the scene where the chariots remained halted. He said that there were talks that Gautam Adani and his family were visiting to participate in the Rath Yatra. The delay in Rath Yatra was orchestrated to facilitate the Adani family’s participation, the opposition party leader said.

He demanded a judicial inquiry by the sitting district and sessions judge of Puri into the delay of Rath Yatra.

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) supremo and former Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik wrote on X, “We aren’t here to point fingers or blame the administration for yesterday’s inordinate delay in pulling the Nandighosa chariot. But it’s impossible not to voice our deep concern and anguish over how things unfolded during the most sacred event in our State. It’s hard to forget how, last year, Lord Balabhadra’s idol slipped during the Adapa Bije Pahandi – a moment that left countless devotees shaken.”

“And now, this year, we witnessed Nandighosha Ratha still standing at the Singhadwar till 7.45 pm, only to move a few metres before the day ended. That understandably has left lakhs of devotees, who came from all over the world to witness this unique event, completely disenchanted and disillusioned. Hundreds of devotees also got injured due to poor crowd management,” Patnaik said.

His party demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan over alleged mismanagement.