The Puri seer on Thursday accused the West Bengal government of misusing the name of Lord Jagannath for commercial gains rather than religious devotion.
Addressing a press conference here, the Shankaracharya of Govardhan Peeth, Swami Nischalananda Saraswati, said, "The West Bengal government is misusing the name of Lord Jagannath for commercial purposes. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee does not have the religious sentiment required to name the Digha temple as ‘Jagannath Dham’."
Clarifying his remarks, the 81-year-old seer pointed out that Puri’s economy is significantly supported by pilgrims from West Bengal.
"Even Mamata Banerjee knows that Puri thrives because of Bengali devotees. Local servitors, hotels, and traders benefit from this," he said.
"To stop the flow of revenue from Bengal to Odisha, she (Mamata) has constructed a Jagannath Temple in Digha and termed it as 'Dham'. Using the 'Dham' tag is not acceptable," the seer said, adding she thinks Bengali pilgrims will now spend money in Digha.
Replying a question, he also criticised ISKCON for conducting different rituals and festivals of Lord Jagannath, including Rath Yatra, on different dates and days not in accordance with the scriptures.
"ISKCON should stop all this," he demanded.
The West Bengal government inaugurated the Jagannath Temple in Digha on April 30 and named it as 'Jagannath Dham', triggering a row.
The controversy began after the West Bengal government inaugurated a Jagannath temple in Digha on April 30, 2025 and named it 'Jagannath Dham'.
The move triggered sharp objections from Puri’s Gajapati Maharaja Divyasingha Deb, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and servitors of the Jagannath Temple, who argue that the ‘Dham’ designation is traditionally and spiritually reserved for Puri.
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