Puri (Odisha) [India] May 3 : Senior Daitapati servitor (sevayat) of the Puri Jagannath Temple, Ramakrishna Das Mahapatra, has welcomed the construction of the newly inaugurated Jagannath Temple in Digha, West Bengal, and appealed for restraint in stirring controversy over its naming.
"The Jagannath temple in Digha, built by West Bengal CM, is magnificent...The Jagannath temple in Puri is the holiest dham in the four dhams...Temples are built across the world to worship Lord Jagannath...It is not good to create controversy." Mahapatra told ANI on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Pradip Purohit objected to the naming of a newly constructed Jagannath temple in West Bengal's Digha as "Jagannath Dham," on Friday. He said that the title is traditionally reserved for the sacred temple in Puri, Odisha.
Speaking to ANI, Purohit said, "The temple has been named Jagannath Dham. There is a Jagannath Dham in Puri and everywhere else there are temples. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee can't build a Dham. There is only one Jagannath Dham in Puri. We welcome the Jagannath temple built in West Bengal but she can't name it as Jagannath Dham."
Earlier, renowned Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik had requested West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to immediately issue an order not to call the newly inaugurated Jagannath Temple at Digha in the state's Purba Medinipur district a "Dham". Pattnaik pointed out that it creates confusion among the devotees of Lord Jagannath.
"The Jagannath Temple inaugurated in Digha is not a Dham...I request CM Mamata Banerjee to immediately order not to call it a Dham as it hurts the sentiments of the devotees of Lord Jagannath and also creates confusion," Pattnaik told ANI.
Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the Jagannath Temple at Digha on Wednesday. The Rs 250 crore temple has been built over 20 acres of land and is similar to the 12th-century temple at Puri of the same deities.
After inaugurating the temple on April 30, Mamata Banerjee took to X and wrote, "The emotions I felt during the inauguration of the Jagannath Temple in Digha are beyond words.
On April 27, Union Minister and West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar asserted that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was trying to win the upcoming state Assembly elections by "climbing on the shoulders" of Lord Jagannath. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee inaugurated Digha Jagannath Temple on April 30
"On one side, you are killing Hindus, and on the other side, you are constructing temples. Constructing temples or mosques is not the job of the government. For the Ayodhya Ram temple, funds were raised by the people. For the Jagannath Temple in Digha, people should raise funds. Why does the state government have to get involved in this? Mamata Banerjee is trying to win the elections by climbing on the shoulders of Lord Jagannath," Sukanta Majumdar told reporters.