Durga Puja under BJP rule in West Bengal: A push for vegetarianism and tradition
A controversy has emerged in West Bengal regarding calls to restrict non-vegetarian food near Durga Puja pandals, supported by some BJP figures. The issue highlights tensions between traditional dietary habits and religious-political agendas.
Why it matters
The debate reflects broader cultural and political struggles over identity, religious expression, and secularism in India.
On September 6, the chief priest of Madhya Pradesh’s Bageshwar Dham, Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, while participating in an event in West Bengal, appealed to the Hindus of West Bengal not to sell non-vegetarian food near Durga Puja pandals.
“I want to appeal to Hindus of Bengal that during Navratri, even if you don’t keep the idols of the Goddess, do not sell non-veg near the idols,” the self-styled godman Shastri said while addressing his devotees.
The remark triggered a huge controversy because a debate has already been raging over what should be the dietary preferences of the people of the State during the festival. On August 26, Vishwa Hindu Parishad office bearers in West Bengal issued a similar advisory that non-vegetarian food should be kept away from Durga Puja pandals to maintain the sanctity of the religious festival.
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