Untimely Rath Yatra plan dropped, says ISKCON unit

Bhubaneswar: Faced with stiff opposition from the devotees of Lord Jagannath for holding an untimely Rath Yatra at Houston in the US, the ISKCON’s Bhubaneswar unit on Tuesday said the organisation has cancelled its proposed chariot festival there on November 9.

The devotees in Houston will instead perform another ritual - Gour Nitai Sankirtan Yatra, the religious body said in a statement here. The decision to observe the festival in November, deviating from the normal practice at Jagannath temple in Puri, where it is held in June or July, has not gone down well with the Lord’s devotees.

“Finally, respecting the sentiments of Odiya devotees of Lord Jagannath, the Houston Rath Yatra is cancelled. They will organise Gour Nitai Sankirtan Yatra,” Tukaram Das, vice president of ISKCON Bhubaneswar, said. However, till 9.30 pm (Tuesday) IST, the ISKCON Houston unit’s website showed that they will hold the “Festival of Bliss – Rath Yatra on November 9 between 10.30 am and 4.00 pm CST (local time).”

When contacted, a senior functionary of the organisation here said the website might not have revised the programme because of the Presidential elections in the US.