The Calcutta High Court has admitted a PIL filed by the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) challenging the use of the term ‘Dham’ for the recently inaugurated Jagannath Temple in Digha, West Bengal. The petition alleges religious misrepresentation and raises concerns over Prasad preparation practices.
The case was taken up by a division bench comprising Justices Soumen Sen and Smita Das, with a hearing expected later this week.
The VHP argues that the term ‘Dham’ holds sacred connotations in Hinduism, traditionally referring only to the Char Dham pilgrimage sites — Badrinath, Rameswaram, Dwarka, and Puri’s Jagannath Temple. The use of the title for Digha’s temple, the petition claims, dilutes the spiritual and historical sanctity of the original sites, especially the revered Shree Jagannath Dham in Puri.
Additionally, the VHP has raised objections regarding religious purity, alleging that portions of the temple’s Prasad were prepared by non-Hindu sweet shop owners, which it claims has hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community.
This legal challenge follows another PIL filed earlier in May by advocate Koustav Bagchi, questioning the financial and legal basis of the Digha temple. That petition alleged public funds were misused in establishing a religious structure initially described in government tenders as a Sanskriti Kendra (Cultural Centre), but which later evolved into a full-fledged temple.
The latest litigation has further intensified the controversy surrounding the temple’s nomenclature, management, and constitutional propriety in a secular framework.
