BHUBANESWAR: The Congress party will organise ‘Sankirtan Satyagrah’ in front of Jagannath temples across the state on November 9 to reiterate its demand for opening of all four gates of Jagannath temple in Puri during the holy month of Kartik.
Announcing this, OPCC president Sarat Pattanayak on Sunday targeted the state government for its indifference towards the problems faced by the devotees in entering the temple through only one door. “Lakhs of devotees are coming to Puri during the month of Kartik to have darshan of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra. The women, particularly old, widows and habisyalis, observe fast during the month and offer puja to the deities,” he said.
Pattanayak said the devotees face difficulties to have darshan of the deities inside the temple as they are made to stand in queue for hours together in front of Singhadwar (Lions Gate) of the temple.“We had asked the government to take steps to open all gates of the temple by October 28. As the government has failed to meet our demand, the party has decided to intensify its agitation by holding Sankirtan Satyagrah in the state,” he said.
As per the programme, the Congress workers will light ‘diyas’ (lamps) and hold Sankirtan in front of Jagannath temples in all blocks, sub-divisions and NACs across the state from 9 am to 12 noon on November 9, he added.