States » EastPosted at: Jun 28 2025 10:04PM


Opposition blames Odisha's BJP govt for Rath Yatra 'mismanagement'

Bhubaneswar, June 28 (UNI) The inordinate delay in pulling Lord Jagannath’s chariot, poor crowd management, devotees being injured in stampede, indiscriminate distribution of cordon passes during yesterday’s Rath Yatra, have come as a major embarrassment for the State’s BJP government.
The Opposition BJD and Congress have squarely blamed the Government machinery for the utter chaos during the pulling of chariots on the grand road in the pilgrim town of Puri.
Reacting to the mismanagement, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) President Naveen Patnaik, today expressed deep concern over the “inordinate delay” in pulling the Nandighosha chariot of Lord Jagannath.
"Such occurrence has besmirched Odisha’s dignity before the World, and is not a good sign for the state," said president of Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Bhakta Charan Das.
Former Odisha Congress chief Niranjan Patnaik, pulling up the government for the utter mismanagement, said “Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb should apologise before Lord Jagannath for it.”
Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik in a veiled attack on the State Government said it not possible to remain silent given the mismanagement of the sacred events.
“We aren’t here to point fingers or blame the administration for yesterday’s inordinate delay in pulling the Nandighosha 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,” Patnaik said in a post in X.
The State BJP unit however refuted the Opposition charges and said both BJD and Congress resorted to misinformation campaigns for political gain.
There was a massive turnout of devotees for the grand spectacle and the annual festival has been incident-free, said State BJP spokesperson Anil Biswal today.
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Tags: #Opposition blames Odisha's BJP govt for Rath Yatra 'mismanagement'
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