Union home minister Amit Shah is set for a brief yet high-profile visit to Mayapur in Nadia district on Wednesday.

Shah is scheduled to attend a religious congregation marking the 152nd holy appearance day of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, the 19th-century Vaishnav revivalist and founder of the Gaudiya Math.

The visit, officially described as devotional, comes at a time when the ruling dispensation at the Centre has stepped up its political engagement with Bengal.

During the tour, Shah is expected to pay floral tributes to the spiritual leader and participate in a ceremonial aarti at the ISKCON temple besides visiting several shrines within the temple complex.

The programme coincides with the Adhibas ceremony of ISKCON ahead of the Dol Yatra festivities where a large gathering of Vaishnav devotees is anticipated. The main event is being organised by the Saraswata Gaudiya Vaishnava Sangha, a joint platform of Vaishnav organisations based in Nabadwip and Mayapur, and will be held on the ISKCON parking grounds.

According to organisers and BJP insiders, Shah is scheduled to land at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport around 2pm before flying to Mayapur in an army helicopter. From the ISKCON helipad, he will travel roughly 300 metres inside the premises to reach the venue. Sources indicated that the home minister might hold a closed-door interaction with ISKCON monks and other religious figures, although no formal agenda is public yet.

Senior state BJP leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari and Sukanta Majumdar, are expected to accompany Shah. Organisers claim he is likely to depart by 4.30pm.

ISKCON Mayapur spokesperson Ramesh Das sought to underline the religious nature of the event, saying: “The organiser of the main event is Saraswata Gaudiya Vaishnava Sangha. However, he will visit our temples. We have no political business. We are a religious organisation, and everyone is welcome here.”

Despite such assertions, the event is widely being viewed through a political lens, given the estimated turnout of nearly 20,000 devotees. BJP leaders have intensified visits of its top leaders to Bengal in recent months, signalling renewed organisational focus on the poll-bound state.

"Temple visits by senior leaders are often framed as personal or cultural engagements, but they increasingly double as mass outreach platforms," said a BJP leader in Nadia.