Ranchi Durga Puja Committee Replaces Jesus Image with Lord Krishna in Vatican-Themed Pandal

Ranchi, Jharkhand, September 27, 2025: The R.R. Sporting Club, organisers of a Durga Puja pandal in Ranchi, replaced an image of Jesus Christ with that of Lord Krishna inside their Vatican City-themed marquee on Friday, September 26, following internal committee discussions aimed at promoting religious harmony. The decision came a day after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) alleged that the pandal was designed to “hurt Hindu sentiments” and encourage religious conversions.

Vicky Yadav, patron of the R R Sporting Club, told PTI on Friday that the replacement was not prompted by protests but was made to showcase multiple religions on the same platform. He added that the European-style statues outside the pandal were retained, emphasising that the theme was meant to promote peace and brotherhood rather than division.

"India stands for religious harmony. If that doesn't exist, then why not just declare this a Hindu nation?" Yadav said, while showing videos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi visiting churches abroad during official trips.

Yadav maintained that the inspiration for the theme of the pandal came from India's multi-faith ethos. "We have been organising Durga Puja for the last 50 years, and every year we make pandals based on certain themes," he said. "This year, we replicated the Vatican City-themed pandal created by Sreebhumi Sporting Club in Kolkata in 2022. Artisans from Kolkata were employed to recreate St Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museum as a backdrop for Goddess Durga,” Yadav added.

On Thursday, VHP national spokesperson Vinod Bansal had expressed concerns on social media, claiming the pandal was designed in a way to hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus and encourage religious conversion. He challenged the organisers to display a photograph of a Hindu god or goddess at events organised by churches or madrasas in Ranchi if they were truly committed to secularism.

Ranchi Durga Puja Committee Replaces Jesus Image with Lord Krishna in Vatican-Themed Pandal

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