A unique tradition of Janmashtami that has been going on for almost six decades in Mominpur area of Kolkata has changed this year. The event which was started by a social worker belonging to the Muslim community and in which people of Hindu-Muslim community kept celebrating Janmashtami together for years, this time it will be conducted only by the people of Hindu community. This matter has come into discussion after the information about exclusion of Muslim members from the organizing committee came to light. The event takes place near the intersection of Bhukailash Road and Hussain Shah Road in the Port area of Kolkata and is said to be its 58th edition this year.
According to local people and old members associated with the event, this Janmashtami event was started about six decades ago by a Muslim social worker named Mohammad Kashim. Over time this event weakened, but after 2011 a group of Muslim youth reactivated it. After this, for many years people of Hindu and Muslim communities kept organizing Janmashtami together. The organizing committee consisted of about 20 members, of which almost half were from the Muslim community. There was participation of both the communities in everything from worship to distribution of Prasad and other arrangements of the event.
Old organizers say that in previous years this event of Janmashtami was seen as an example of communal harmony at the local level. People from the Muslim community took part in the arrangements and carried out religious programs along with Hindu devotees. During the event, Prasad was also distributed and religious rituals related to Janmashtami were performed in the prescribed manner. For this reason, this event of Mominpur had a different identity from other religious events.
But this year there has been a big change in the arrangements of the event. According to some people associated with the organizing committee, now Muslim members have not been included in the committee and the Janmashtami program will be conducted only by people from the Hindu community. Former BJP candidate Rakesh Singh, who is associated with the event, has also said that this year the event will be organized only by Hindus. They argue that Janmashtami is a festival of Hindu religion and religious events should be conducted by the people of Hindu community only.
According to Rakesh Singh, people of other religions can come to the Janmashtami pandal, but the responsibility of conducting religious activities should be on the Hindu community. They have linked it to protecting their religious and cultural traditions. On the other hand, Muslim members associated with the old event say that they have been playing an active role in this event for years and people from both Hindu and Muslim communities were included in the committee. This time the exclusion of Muslim members from the committee is a big change for them.
Mohammad Alam, an old member associated with this event, said that since 2011, Muslim youth had also played an active role in the event. According to him, half the members of the 20-member committee were Muslims. Everyone used to organize programs together, distribute prasad and help in completing the religious rituals of Janmashtami. This time, he has described the withdrawal of Muslim faces from the committee as a big change in the old system of organizing the event.
Preparations have also started at the venue this year. According to reports, a big saffron and white colored pandal is being prepared there. Preparations are being made by the organizers regarding construction of the pandal and arrangements for the event. The venue is being decorated and preparations are also being made for the arrival of devotees on the occasion of Janmashtami.
This event of Mominpur is also considered important because it has been associated with the social fabric of Kolkata, where people of different communities have been seeing each other's participation in many religious and cultural events. In its six decade long history, the form of this Janmashtami program changed many times, but Hindu-Muslim participation remained its main identity. Now after the change in the structure of the committee, there is talk of abolition of this old form.
According to local people, the history of this event is not limited to just religious celebrations. This was also a part of collective participation of the people of the area. People from the Muslim community played a role in starting the event and took it forward in later years along with people from the Hindu community. For this reason, this program was successful in creating a distinct identity at the local level. Now when it has come to light that the running of the event will be in the hands of the Hindu community only, different opinions are emerging regarding this among the old organizers and the local people.
This change has happened at a time when political debate is intensifying in West Bengal regarding religious events and cultural identity. In recent days, there were also reports of Vishwa Hindu Parishad advising Durga Puja committees to give priority to Hindu culture and traditions in the event. In such an environment, the change in Mominpur's Janmashtami celebrations has become a topic of discussion from both political and social point of view.
An important aspect in this whole matter is that the participation of the Muslim community in the organizing committee of the same program, which is said to be initiated by the Muslim social worker, has ended today. Changing the form of a religious event in a span of about six decades is also considered important from the point of view of local history and social relations.
A section of organizers say that the right to conduct religious festivals should rest with the community to which the festival belongs. At the same time, people associated with the old event are seeing this as the end of the joint partnership that has been going on for years. This is the reason why this time Mominpur's Janmashtami has become not only a religious festival but also a subject of social and cultural debate.
In this area of Kolkata, a large number of people have been reaching the venue every year during Janmashtami. This time too, preparations for the event are going on and the pandal is being prepared. However, the conduct of the event and the structure of the committee will be different from previous years. Different views have also come out from the organizers regarding the entry of people from other communities in the program. According to the report, people associated with the event have said that people of other religions can come to the pandal, but the religious activities will be conducted by the Hindu community.
Janmashtami will be celebrated on 4 September across the country in 2026. Preparations for this have started in temples and puja pandals in West Bengal including Kolkata. At such a time, the change in this old event of Mominpur is especially in discussion.
Overall, the form of the nearly six decade old Janmashtami celebration in Mominpur, Kolkata has changed this year. This tradition, which is said to be associated with Muslim social activist Mohammad Kashim, has seen joint participation of people from Muslim and Hindu communities for a long time. After 2011, Muslim youth also played a role in reactivating the event and there was a good participation of Muslim members in the committee. Now the decision has come to operate the organizing committee with only Hindu members in 2026. This change has sparked a new debate about Kolkata's old shared culture, religious events and community participation.