Amit Shah to visit Mayapur today for ISKCON ceremony ahead of WB elections

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will make a brief visit to the ISKCON temple at Mayapur in West Bengal today to participate in a religious and cultural programme , sources said. The visit comes ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections , though BJP leaders emphasise that it is strictly devotional , with no political meetings or rallies planned.

Shah is expected to arrive at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in the afternoon and travel by helicopter to Mayapur in Nadia district, the global headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) . Upon landing, he will proceed to the temple complex in a golf cart amid devotional chanting and ceremonial reception by temple authorities and students of the Vedic gurukul.

During his approximately two-hour visit , Shah will pay floral tributes to ISKCON founder A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada , participate in rituals at the shrines of Lord Narasimha, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and Radha‑Madhav, and attend the main programme commemorating the birth anniversary of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur . He is expected to address the gathering , which organisers say will be religious and cultural in nature with a large turnout of devotees.

The event is being organised in association with the Saraswata Gaudiya Vaishnava Sangha , a platform of Vaishnav organisations in Mayapur and Nabadwip, and coincides with the Adhibas ceremony ahead of the Dol Yatra festivities.

While the visit is primarily devotional, political analysts note that such high-profile appearances by senior leaders can carry significance amid the West Bengal Assembly elections , particularly in areas with large populations of Matuas and Namasudras.

Senior leaders from the Bharatiya Janata Party’s West Bengal unit are expected to accompany Shah at the temple. After the programme, he is likely to return to Kolkata airport before flying back to New Delhi later in the afternoon.