Khunti Puja at Baghbazar on Sunday
With the Sealdah City Civil Court giving its ruling on Sept 3 and Calcutta High Court endorsing it on Sept 15, Baghbazar puja general secretary Goutam Neogy said they chose Sunday to conduct the ceremonies for everyone’s convenience. “Our work on the pandal, idol and lighting had actually started on Sept 7 when the new committee was formed after a meeting following the lower court verdict.
The straw and clay have also arrived for crafting of the idol at the puja ground,” he said. The delay of over a month in conducting the ceremonies was owing to a legal tangle in which the puja had got embroiled over election of committee members. After the HC ratified the verdict, the conflict was finally put to rest. This year, the pandal will be based on the Swaminarayan Temple in New Jersey. Sadhan Pal of Jiten Pal & Sons is crafting the idol.
The Baghbazar puja is back in its natural avatar in its 108th year,” said another participant. “This is an apolitical organisation. In a family, there might be differences of opinion. One side decided to approach court. Now, that has been resolved. But this is a puja where its president was Subhas Chandra Bose. There was a totally false hype that the puja might not happen. I got calls from as far as US to Mumbai enquiring whether there would any puja. This can never ever be that this puja will stop. Calcutta High Court had upheld a lower court ruling validating the process followed to constitute the Bagbazar Puja committee, thereby resolving a deadlock over the oldest community Durga Puja in Kolkata. Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya had also dismissed club member Rabishankar Sengupta’s petition challenging the casting-vote procedure.
today’s event should drive out all naysayers from here While the construction of the pandal has already begun.