Bhubaneswar: Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan on Friday offered a detailed clarification on the ‘lone’ reason behind the delay in pulling of chariots during Rath Yatra in Odisha’s Puri on June 27.
This followed a scathing attack by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who during the ‘Samvidhan Bachao’ rally in Bhubaneswar claimed that rituals like Rath Yatra are being manipulated to honour industrialist Gautam Adani and that the state government prioritises billionaires over its citizens. “When Jagannath Yatra is taken out in Odisha, when raths (chariots) are pulled, lakhs of people witness it and follow it. Then, a drama takes place and the raths were stopped for Adani and his family. This will make you understand everything about the Odisha government.”
Harichanchan, however, declined to comment on Rahul’s statement, terming it as ‘inconsequential’ and ‘illogical’.
The minister attributed the delay on the first day of the annual sojourn of the sibling deities of Shree Jagannath Temple to overcrowding and uncontrolled pulling of the chariots. “It was difficult to control the turns Taladhwaja of Lord Balabhadra took as the crowd swelled. The devotees often tend to pull the chariot in different directions, which is why it took almost an hour for it to reach the distance following which the chariot of Devi Subhadra could be pulled. The chariot of Lord Jagannath was later pulled for some distance to maintain the Rath Yatra ritual,” he told the media.
He further stated that the pulling of the chariots to Shree Gundhicha Temple was completed smoothly ahead of time the following day. “The three chariots reached Saradhabali by 1.15 pm,” he said.
Harichandan also clarified that Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani, along with his wife Priti and son Karan, participated in the pulling of the chariots during the morning rituals on June 28. “The chariots alway reach Gudhichan Temple on the second day. There was only one exception during the COVID times when servitors and police personnel had pulled the chariots,” he asserted.
He added that Opposition BJD and Congress had made similar allegations, terming the delay as a deliberate attempt to allow the Adani family to pull the chariots.
What happened on June 27
A large crowd of devotees, waiting at Bada Danda since morning despite rain, rushed to Singhadwara after the outer cordon was lifted at 4 pm to pull the chariots, with many gathering around Taladhwaja of Lord Balabhadra.
The pulling of the Taladhwaja chariot began at 4.17 pm, 17 minutes behind schedule. But it veered left and right due to mishandling of the four ropes by devotees and security personnel, causing it to stray from a straight path. Despite temple authorities’ instructions to clear the inner cordon, many pilgrims remained and pulled the ropes, leading to frequent stops to realign the chariot. This delay pushed the start of Devi Subhadra’s chariot pulling to 6:10 pm under floodlights The delay further postponed Nandighosha’s pulling to around 7:45 pm. Overcrowding at Singhadwara prevented Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi from participating in pulling Nandighosha, forcing him to stay on the designated VVIP stage.