Fact Check: Image of President Murmu standing behind a barricade at Puri temple makes a misleading claim she was not allowed inside sanctorum
A collage of two images is in circulation with the narrative that Railway Minister Aswini Vaishnaw was allowed into the sanctum sanctorum of the Jagannath Temple in Puri but President of India MS Draupadi Murmu was not allowed into the sanctum sanctorum of the same temple.
A collage of two images is in circulation with the narrative that Railway Minister Aswini Vaishnaw was allowed into the sanctum sanctorum of the Jagannath Temple in Puri but President of India MS Draupadi Murmu was not allowed into the sanctum sanctorum of the same temple.
The narrative implies that she was not allowed inside the shrine as belongs to the Dalit community.
Fact Check:
The claim is misleading.
The temple seen in these images is that of Jagannath temple in Hauz Khas, Delhi, and not Puri.
When we performed Google reverse image search, we found that the images of Ashwini Vaishnaw visiting the temple are from July 2021 during the occasion of Rath Yatra. This image can be seen in a tweet published by the railway minister himself on July 12, 2021.
The temple’s sanctum sanctorum is kept open only during the avahan of the deity for the Rath Yatra. Only the chief guest and the priests are allowed inside the sanctorum on the occasion. The rituals and ceremonies carried out in the temple are listed on their website.
President of India Ms Draupadi Murmu also shared the pictures of her visit to Jagannath temple in Hauz Khas in Delhi on her Twitter handle with the caption in Odiya. When translated, it states: “I extend my heartiest congratulations and best wishes to all the countrymen, especially the devotees of Mahaprabhu Sri Jagannath, on the arrival of Mahaprabhu Srijagannath's Rathayatra. Praying to Lord Shri Jagannath that this great festival of devotion brings happiness, peace, and prosperity in everyone's life. Jai Jagannath!”
When searched further, we also found a tweet by Sandip Sahu, author of the book “Madam President”, a biography of the President. The tweet was published on June 26, 2023, where he states that according to the secretary of the Hauz Khas Jagannath temple where the picture was taken, it was the President’s own decision not to go beyond the last barricade since she is a deeply religious person and knows the rituals. No one stopped her.
Here is his tweet.
According to an article on www.outlook.com, the authorities of the temple refuted the allegations and confirmed that the decision of standing behind the barricade was made by the President herself.
According to the fact check by Newschecker, Shree Neelachal Seva Sangha, organizer of the Jagannath Temple in Hauz Khas, Delhi, the President visited the temple. Due to security concerns, she decided to visit the temple in the morning and perform rituals. There was no publicity for the visit.
Lord Jagannath temple in Hauz Khas was built in 1967 after the well-known temple of Puri in Odisha. The temple administration started the rath yatra ritual in 1979.
Therefore, the claim that President Murmu was a target of discrimination in Jagannath temple due to her caste is misleading.