Chhat Puja devotees on Friday morning held a protest outside the Rabindra Sarovar in south Kolkata seeking permission to perform the puja inside the premises around the water body.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had on Thursday appealed to people to perform Chhat puja from their homes or neighbourhood ponds as the two major water bodies – Rabindra Sarovar and Subhas Sarovar – cannot be used for the Puja as per court orders on grounds of the COVID-19 outbreak and for pollution caused to these water bodies. The Calcutta High Court said devotees cannot use Subhas Sarovar and asked police to take necessary steps. Later in the day on Thursday, the Supreme Court refused to pass any order on a petition filed by the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) that sought a review of the order by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) which banned Chhat puja at the Rabindra Sarovar.
At the protest outside Rabindra Sarovar, police intervened and brought the situation under control. The devotees sought a clearance for four hours stating that it would not harm the environment. Gate numbers one, two and three were closed already, and police was posted outside. Devotees were stopped by the police and a heated argument ensued. However, the situation was quickly brought under control.
Comments are closed.