Puja rituals begin in Bakreswar temple after a day's halt

Normal puja rituals by priests commenced in the centuries-old Bakreswar temple here today, after day-long protests on Wednesday by 'Sevayats' and section of pilgrims demanding the proposed under-construction arch on the nearby highway contain references of both the temple and a famous shrine as a symbol of communal amity.
Bablu Chakraborty, a senior priest, said yesterday they did not offer puja to the deity but did not prevent people from offering puja if they wished the same.
Secretary of Bakreswar Sevait Samity Rajib Chowdhury said, "The arch being constructed should not solely bear the symbols and features of one shrine. Our demand is that the name and features of Bakreswar dham should also be engraved on the gate. By this act, the gate can be a true monument of communal harmony.

The BDO, Suri has promised that he would look in to the matter within seven days, Chowdhury claimed.
Yesterday, hundreds of people gathered at the Suri-Bakreshar Road near the arch besides NH 60 to protest any move to engrave features of only one shrine on the arch wall and demanded the gate construction be stopped and measures to redesign the wall column with motifs of both temple and shrine be initiated within a week's time.
However, the protestors were persuaded by BDO, Suri -1 Koushik Mukherjee, who went to the area with a big force to lift the dharna, an official said.

The protestors were led by Sevait Samity, Hindu Jagaran Mancha and BJP activists of the area.

BDO Mukherjee said the agitators wanted to alter the design of the gate so that references of both Bakreswar temple and Patharchapri shrine were retained in the same construction and demanded putting a halt to construction work until further order.
"However, as the decision to construct a gate on this road had been taken at higher level, we can't take any such steps on our own. I told them that I would submit a report to the district magistrate. They have served a seven-day ultimatum,' he said.

Haji Illias Khan , a member of the 'Patharchapri Development Committee' said, "A handful of people without any public support are trying to whip up passion for political interest but we want communal harmony in this area.'
District BJP unit Secretary Kalosona Mondal said, "We have supported this agitation. A memorandum signed by 3,000 people was submitted to the district administration.