Durga Puja Pandal desecrated as West Bengal politician sings Islamic religious song during inauguration
Kolkata, West Bengal, India 
23 September, 2025
Case Summary
A Hindu festival venue was desecrated in Kolkata when Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra sang an Islamic religious song inside a Durga Puja pandal during its inauguration on 24 September 2025. The act took place in the presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The incident took place at the Mukto Dal Durga Puja held at the Bhowanipore Shitala Mandir. A video from the event showed Madan Mitra singing a nasheed that praised the Kaaba in Mecca and Medina, the holiest sites in Islam, while Mamata Banerjee clapped along. The lyrics included the lines “Aamaar Hridoyote Kaba, aamaar noyone Medina” (“Kaaba is in my heart, Medina is in my eyes”). Though Mitra later added a short improvisation invoking the Ganga and Yamuna, the performance remained a devotional Islamic composition inappropriate for the setting of a Hindu ritual celebration. Mamata Banerjee had inaugurated several other pandals the same day at Singhi Park, Mudiyali, Hindustan Park and nearby locations. Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Malviya condemned the episode, stating that Sanatan Dharma and Hindu customs were being trampled in West Bengal. He accused Mamata Banerjee of further disrespect by appearing in a hijab while inaugurating puja venues. Malviya urged Hindus in the state to safeguard their traditions, warning that silence would leave them vulnerable to what he described as an advancing jihad, the consequences of which were already evident in neighbouring Bangladesh.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The primary category in this case is: Attack on Hindu religious representations. The first subcategory under this is: Breaking rules of place of worship. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. One of these oral traditions or written traditions is the rules of specific temples. Certain temples have rules which are traditional rules, dependent on the worship of the presiding deities. These rules and traditions have been followed for thousands of years whether they find scriptural mention or not. Such traditions are based on the nature and rules of worship of the presiding deity of that temple. Any non-compliance of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the presiding deity but also disregard for the faith of the devotees of that deity/temple and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition and the deity itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific temple and presiding deity, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. The second subcategory under this is: Defiling religious customs. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. There are several such customs and traditions that are followed by various Hindus and Hindu sects. Defiling of these traditions and customs is a breach of an individual or group’s religious practices. Such practices can range from dietary restrictions like not eating non-vegetarian food for a certain period of the year, not eating non-vegetarian food at all, not eating beef since the cow is considered holy in Hinduism, the sanctity of religious customs followed in the house (like many ISCKON devotees), etc. Any malicious action leading to the breach of such traditions or defilement of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the religion itself but also from disregard for the faith of the devotees who follow the customs/traditions and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific sect of Hindus, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. This case has been recorded in the tracker because it represents a deliberate act of desecration of a Hindu religious space and its sanctified customs. Durga Puja, or Navratri, is one of the most sacred occasions for Hindus, centred upon the worship of Goddess Durga and marked by profound ritual observances that have been transmitted through centuries of practice. The pandal, though temporary in form, becomes a consecrated site for the duration of the festival and is therefore bound by the same principles of sanctity as a temple or any other space dedicated to ritual worship. Within such a setting, every word, act, or gesture carries a religious significance. The act of rendering an Islamic nasheed within the Durga Puja pandal is not a mere instance of cultural exchange, as some may argue, but a violation of the core sanctity of the venue. The rules of Hindu worship spaces, whether enshrined in scripture or maintained through generations of oral and customary tradition, are absolute within their context. They are tied to the presiding deity and the expectations of the devotees, who recognise the pandal as a sacred house of the Goddess. By introducing a devotional song glorifying the Kaaba and Medina, two sites revered in Islam but entirely unrelated to the worship of Durga, Madan Mitra intruded upon and disrupted the religious framework of the occasion. This intrusion must be classified under the category of breaking the rules of the place of worship, for it imposed a non-Hindu form of reverence within a Hindu ritual arena, disregarding the deity, the traditions of the temple, and the faith of the assembled devotees. Further, the episode constitutes defiling of religious customs. Hindu festivals are bound by long-standing customs, many of which are not codified in a single text but endure through unbroken continuity of practice. One such custom is the maintenance of exclusivity of Hindu forms of devotion within the precincts of the puja venue. Just as dietary or ritual observances are taken as essential to uphold purity in Hindu practice, the integrity of songs, chants, and prayers is fundamental during a festival. To bring in an alien devotional song in praise of another religion’s holy sites at a moment of Hindu worship is to defile the religious customs associated with Durga Puja. It disrespects not only the Goddess but also the beliefs of the countless Hindus for whom the festival is a profound religious event. This action cannot be trivialised as a casual lapse, because the choice of words and the deliberate performance in front of the Chief Minister indicate that it was intended as a public spectacle. The very act of placing Islamic expressions within the setting of a Hindu puja transforms it into an expression of dominance over Hindu spaces. When a Hindu festival is interrupted or reshaped by non-Hindu elements introduced from outside the faith, it ceases to be a matter of accident and becomes a matter of bias, because the sanctity of Hindu tradition is undermined by deliberate insertion of alien religious content. For this reason, the act is rightly categorised as a hate crime. It was not only offensive but intrinsically hostile, because it disregarded the faith of Hindus at one of their most important festivals. To sing an Islamic devotional song inside a Durga Puja pandal is an affront to the sacredness of the occasion and a direct violation of the implicit rules that govern Hindu places of worship. It simultaneously breaks the rules of the worship site and defiles the customs tied to the festival. Such actions do not merely display ignorance; they reveal a conscious disdain towards Hindu faith and practice. By including this case in the tracker, it is emphasised that Hindu religious spaces and customs deserve the same recognition and protection as any other faith tradition. The desecration of a pandal through non-Hindu expressions, especially during Durga Puja, is not an act that can be normalised or excused; it is a religiously motivated offence that undermines the dignity of Hindu worship and the continuity of its sacred traditions.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
State and Establishment
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
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