BJP protests against Chhath Puja 'ban' in Delhi

The Chhath Puja celebrations will begin on the evening of November 20 and continue till the next morning.
BJP workers and supporters protest against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal outside his residence on Tuesday. (Photo | PTI)
BJP workers and supporters protest against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal outside his residence on Tuesday. (Photo | PTI)

NEW DELHI:  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the national protested outside the residence of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday demanding the removal of restrictions on Chhath Puja celebrations at public places-ghats (river bank), temples and other sites.

The demonstration was Delhi BJP’s Purvanchal Morcha president Kaushal Mishra. He said that Kejriwal is ‘anti-Purvanchali’ and putting ‘ban’ on the festival had hurt the religious sentiments of the people from Bihar and Purvanchal living in Delhi.

The AAP government should withdraw its ‘Tughlaqi Farman’ (diktat) within the next 24 hours or Purvanchalis will teach it a lesson at the right moment, said Delhi BJP vice president Dinesh Pratap Singh.
Representatives of Chhath Puja committees and hundreds of Purvanchalis also took part in the protest, claimed the party leaders.

The Chhath Puja celebrations will begin on the evening of November 20 and continue till the next morning. “

Kejriwal allowed the opening of weekly markets, malls, liquor shops and permitted e-rickshaws or DTC buses with full capacity. He even, on Diwali, performed Puja at Akshardham temple. Why is he discriminating against Purvanchalis by banning Chhath Mahaparva? This mistreatment by CM Kejriwal is unbearable,” said general secretary of Delhi BJP Dinesh Pratap Singh.

Amid an unprecedented surge in the Covid-19 cases, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) last week instructed officials to ensure that Chhath Puja this year is not performed at public places, river banks and temples in the city. It also decided not to grant permission for the public celebrations.

The Delhi chief secretary, who is also the chairman of Delhi Disaster Management Authority executive committee, had advised citizens to observe the festival at home.

“Just as Chief Minister Kejriwal wrote a letter to the Centre and sent a proposal to ban Chhath, similarly he should send a proposal to the Lieutenant Governor for permission to organise the Chhath Mahaparva, we will get permission from the Lieutenant Governor,” Singh added.

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