Campaign posters written in Bengali and directed at West Bengal voters have surfaced throughout the coastal pilgrimage town of Puri, triggering a wave of criticism regarding the alleged politicisation of the sacred site.
The posters, prominently featuring the ruling BJP’s “lotus” symbol, call upon devotees of Lord Jagannath to back the party in the upcoming West Bengal elections, scheduled to take place in two phases on April 23 and 29.
The promotional materials have been placed at high-traffic hubs, including the sea beach, the bus terminal, the railway station, and the iconic Grand Road adjacent to the Jagannath Temple, where pilgrims and tourists congregate in large numbers.
The Swargadwar cremation ground area, often dubbed “mini-Bengal” due to its high concentration of Bengali visitors and local shopkeepers, has also been blanketed with these campaign messages.
The primary objective of the campaign is to capture the attention of Bengali tourists, encouraging them to cast their ballots for the BJP in their home state. However, the initiative has met with a cold reception from some visitors.
Protima Basu, a tourist from West Bengal, remarked that she travelled to Puri specifically to escape the election fervour and find peace while paying her respects to Lord Jagannath, rather than being confronted by campaign rhetoric.
The development has also not gone down well with the opposition BJD.
“I was born and raised in this town, but have never seen Bengal election posters being pasted on the walls of Puri. The BJP is misusing the pilgrimage town. Puri is one of the sacred four ‘dhams’ of the Hindus and should be kept out of politics,” BJD Rajya Sabha MP Subhasish Khuntia said.
He also urged the Odisha government to remove the posters and maintain the town’s sanctity.
Residents have voiced similar concerns about the unprecedented nature of the campaign. Rathindra Mishra, a Puri resident, pointed out that this marks the first time a political party has utilised the town as a base for campaigning in an out-of-state election.
The BJP, which came to power in Odisha in 2024, defeating the BJD, however, does not see anything wrong in it.
Officials said tourists from West Bengal account for around 15 per cent of domestic visitors to Odisha, with most visiting Puri for the temple and sea beach.
BJP leaders from Odisha, including ministers and MLAs, have been campaigning in West Bengal. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi also visited the neighbouring state twice to address election rallies.
