Sambit Patra's 'Slip of Tongue' on Lord Jagannath, PM Modi Sparks Huge Row

Sambit Patra's 'slip of the tongue' regarding Lord Jagannath and PM Modi sparks a significant controversy. Here's how the Opposition reacted.

BJP's Puri candidate Sambit Patra's statement that "Lord Jagannath is a devotee of Prime Minister Narendra Modi" sparked a political controversy.

Bharatiya Janata Party's Puri candidate Sambit Patra's comment that Odisha's most revered deity, "Lord Jagannath is a devotee (bhakt) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," ignited a major political controversy. This led to criticism from top leaders such as Naveen Patnaik, Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, and Arvind Kejriwal against the BJP. Later, Sambit Patra described it as a "slip of the tongue."

The Congress shared a video of Sambit Patra speaking in Odia and criticized his remark on a local TV news channel, demanding that Prime Minister Modi apologize for the comment.

While Sambit Patra apologized for the comment and claimed that "we all have slips of the tongue sometimes," the Opposition leaders seized on the remark, denouncing it as an "insult" to Lord Jagannath.

Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha, criticized Sambit Patra for hurting Odia 'asmita' (pride) in a post on X.

"Mahaprabhu Shree Jagannatha is the Lord of the Universe. Calling Mahaprabhu a 'bhakt' of another human being is an insult to the Lord... it is totally condemnable. This has hurt the sentiments and demeaned the faith of crores of Jagannatha bhaktas and Odias across the world.

"The Lord is the greatest symbol of Odia asmita. I strongly denounce the statement... and I appeal to the BJP to keep the Lord above any political discourse. By this, you have deeply hurt Odia asmita and this will be remembered and condemned by people of Odisha for a very long time," Naveen Patnaik said.

Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress chief, said it reinforces "our charge that a BJP, drunk with power, will not even spare our Gods, let alone India's people."

Mallikarjun Kharge condemned BJP's Puri candidate's remarks as an insult to Mahaprabhu Shree Jagannatha and stated that this arrogance would be defeated by the 'Will of the People' on June 4th.

Rahul Gandhi criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the comment, stating that considering oneself as an emperor and being revered as God by courtiers signals the downfall of sin. He questioned who gave BJP the right to hurt the sentiments of millions, attributing their ego to their impending destruction.

Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, alleged that Sambit Patra's remark reflects the "arrogance" of BJP leaders.

"I strongly condemn this statement of the BJP. They have started thinking that they are above God. This is a height of arrogance. Calling God a devotee of Modi ji is an insult to God," Arvind Kejriwal posted on X.

Ajoy Kumar, the AICC in-charge of Odisha, also condemned the statement.

"The country and Odisha will not tolerate this insult of Lord Jagannath!" Ajoy Kumar posted on the micro-blogging site.

"Will the media ask any question to Sambit Patra? Where are those journalists with the 7 pm agenda? Where have those Hindutva organisations gone," he added.

Sambit Patra clarifies Sambit Patra later clarified that he meant to say that the PM was an ardent 'bhakt' (devotee) of Lord Jagannath and not the other way around.

Responding to Naveen Patnaik's post, Sambit Patra said, “I gave a number of bytes today to multiple media channels after the massive success of Shri Narendra Modiji's road show in Puri today, everywhere I mentioned that Modi ji is an ardent 'bhakt' of Shri Jagannath Mahaprabhu. By mistake during one of the bytes, I said just the opposite... I know you too know and understand this... Sir let's not make an issue out of a nonexistent issue... we all have slip of tongue sometimes.”

PM Modi Addresses Rallies in Odisha Addressing two election rallies in Angul and Cuttack on Monday, PM Narendra Modi raised the missing Ratna Bhandar key issue and sought to know why the BJD government in the state "suppressed the judicial commission report" on the matter.