The Bengal government will remove the ‘Dham’ tag from the Digha temple name

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led West Bengal government will remove the word “Dham” from the name of the Jagannath temple in Digha, which was established by the previous Trinamool Congress government. | Photo credit: Debasish Bhaduri

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led West Bengal government will remove the word “Dham” from the name of the Jagannath temple in Digha, which was established by the previous Trinamool Congress government.

Addressing a press conference from the Nabanna state secretariat on Tuesday (June 9, 2026), Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said the decision was taken on the basis of Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s suggestion.

Puri Lok Sabha Member of Parliament, Sambit Patra, handed over Mr. Manjhi’s letter to Mr. Adhikari on Tuesday. “I accept this letter. We revoke the word – ‘Dham’. We respect Sanatan Dharma. There is only Chaar Dham (four abodes) in Hindu Sanatana. In 2025 this temple was inaugurated and named Jagannath Dham. This step did not hurt the sentiment of all Hindus who should also stay in Odisha, Bengal, who should stay in Odisha and Venice. The ideology of Sanatan has now changed and we have decided on this matter act,” said Mr. Adhikari.

On 30 April 2025, the then West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the temple at Digha, which was built at a cost of around ₹250 million. The shrine is also a replica of the 12th century temple at Puri.

Objection by BJP

However, the State BJP leadership called Ms Banerjee a “fake Hindu” and accused her of indulging in symbolic religious construction to divert attention from the politics of minority appeasement.

BJP leaders along with religious authorities from Puri objected to calling the temple “Jagannath Dham”. They argued that the term “Dham” was religiously exclusive to the sacred Char Dham (including Puri) and eventually celebrated the state’s removal of the “Dham” sign as a victory for Hindu unity.

Mr. Adhikari said, “Let me make it clear that the then government approved it as a cultural centre. We will remove the word ‘Dham’. The cultural center complex will remain and the worship will continue. The entire complex will function as a temple but the word ‘Dham’ will be dropped. I too felt that the previous government ignored the sentiments of the people.”

The Chief Minister also said that Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Agarwal will issue a formal notification in this regard soon.

Published – 09 Jun 2026 23:19 IST