The BJP’s Ganesha Gambit

Pune’s Ganeshotsav has become an enormous civic and political stage, and the ruling party has proved adept at occupying it. Pune: The city’s Ganeshotsav is entering its final phase, but the festival has already demonstrated something beyond its extraordinary crowds and familiar spectacle: the extent to which it has become a political stage. This year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has left a particularly visible imprint on the festivities, using an event that reaches deep into the city’s...

min read

Pune’s Ganeshotsav has become an enormous civic and political stage, and the ruling party has proved adept at occupying it. Pune: The city’s Ganeshotsav is entering its final phase, but the festival has already demonstrated something beyond its extraordinary crowds and familiar spectacle: the extent to which it has become a political stage. This year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has left a particularly visible imprint on the festivities, using an event that reaches deep into the city’s neighbourhoods as an opportunity for public outreach. The political appropriation of the festival has not, however, been without a counter-current. Demands were raised for curbs on noise pollution, loudspeakers and the volume of dhol-tasha performances. The argument was not against Ganeshotsav itself, but for moderation - notably, a complete ban on DJ music and limits on the number of dhol and tasha instruments used by performing troupes. Familiar Troubles The festival’s reality has been rather different. Major roads have been occupied by mandaps. Processions celebrating the arrival of Lord Ganesha have unfolded amid punishing noise. DJ music, while subject to restrictions, has continued. Traffic congestion has become a familiar feature of the festival, with the movement of political leaders adding another layer to the city’s already strained roads. The Peth areas have remained crowded deep into the night. The Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati temple has drawn enormous crowds for darshan from the opening day. From the old city to housing societies and neighbourhood mandals, Ganeshotsav touches virtually every part of Pune. For a political party seeking a direct connection with citizens, few occasions offer such a ready-made network of people, institutions and local influencers. The BJP enters this festival with an unusually formidable organisational base. It has two MPs, seven MLAs and more than 100 corporators in Pune. Murlidhar Mohol, one of the city’s MPs, is a Union Minister of State. Chandrakant Patil is a Cabinet minister in the Maharashtra government, while Madhuri Misal is a Minister of State. The party’s presence also extends into the festival’s organisational architecture. Its influence is visible across numerous mandals, large and small. BJP MLA Hemant Rasane is General Secretary of the Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Sarvajanik Ganpati Trust. Kunal Tilak, a member of Lokmanya Tilak’s family, is a BJP corporator. The political and cultural histories of Pune therefore intersect in ways that are difficult to ignore. The BJP’s senior leadership has also made the most of the occasion. National President Nitin Nabin visited Pune to seek Lord Ganesha’s blessings, while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited the city before and during the festival. Such visits are about more than religious observance. In a festival watched by millions and embedded in the city’s social life, political visibility comes almost automatically. There is also talk in Pune that the BJP provided substantial financial support to Dhol-Lezim troupes and their organisers, with claims that some major mandals received financial backing as well. These claims would require independent verification, but the perception itself points to the depth of the political contest around Ganeshotsav. BJP workers, according to local observers, have also sought to make their presence more conspicuous than that of festivities organised by housing societies. Useful Expedient The festival arrives at a politically useful moment for the BJP. The party has faced disquiet on several fronts. Young people have been agitated over the paper-leak controversy. Broader public dissatisfaction has been voiced over inflation and unemployment, while government policies relating to ethanol and charges associated with UPI transactions have also generated criticism. While a political party can defend a policy in a press conference and advertise its achievements, during Ganeshotsav, its workers can be physically present in neighbourhoods, among processions, mandals, cultural groups and devotees. Politics thus becomes less about argument and more about visibility. That is the BJP’s advantage in Pune. Ganeshotsav, after all, is not simply a sequence of religious rituals. It is an elaborate civic network involving local organisers, volunteers, cultural groups, businesses, residents and political representatives. Whoever has influence over that network acquires a powerful channel of communication with the city. The BJP appears to understand this particularly well. Its strength in Pune’s electoral politics has been reinforced by a presence that extends beyond elections and into the institutions and social spaces that organise public life. The irony is that the very scale of the festival that makes it politically attractive also magnifies the civic costs. The political value of Ganeshotsav and the civic burden it creates are therefore two sides of the same phenomenon. For Pune, the larger question is not whether politics has entered Ganeshotsav. It has done so for decades. The more consequential question is whether the festival’s extraordinary social capital will remain primarily a vehicle for political outreach or whether the same influence can be used to reconcile celebration with the ordinary civic needs of the city. For the moment, the BJP seems to have understood the first proposition better than most.

Varanasi: A Journey That Touches the Soul

Archita Redkar

Nov 27, 2025

3 min read

A visit to culturally rich Varanasi brought discoveries—food, history, rituals—but beyond all of it, the city touched something deeper within us.

Varanasi had long been on my wish list—one of those places my heart wanted to revisit, this time with my family. When I mentioned it at home, my daughter’s eyes lit up, and soon the three of us decided on a winter trip. January is one of the best months to experience the city, so on the 15th, we set off, wrapped in crisp winter air and a calm, peaceful mood.

With nearly 25 years in the tourism industry, planning the trip felt effortless. We chose a comfortable 3-star hotel near the Ganga, complete with a warm in-house restaurant for hearty breakfasts. I contacted our trusted guide, Sanmegh, who readily agreed to join us. A good local guide is invaluable in a city as culturally rich as Varanasi, especially since my last visit was years ago—before the Kashi Vishwanath reconstruction and the post-COVID transformations. This time, I wanted to experience the city more deeply, and with Sanmegh’s insight, we rediscovered Varanasi in its full spiritual splendour.

Varanasi—also known as Banaras or Kashi—is one of the world’s oldest living cities. Resting on the sacred Ganga, its history spans thousands of years, with scriptures mentioning Kashi as early as the first millennium BCE. Nearby lies Sarnath, where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon, marked by Ashoka’s Lion Capital. The city’s spiritual identity deepened in the 8th century when Adi Shankaracharya formalised Shiva worship here. Over time, Varanasi grew into a centre of the Bhakti movement, home to saints like Kabir, Ravidas, and Tulsidas.

The ghats of Varanasi reveal life’s deepest truths. Dashashwamedh, Panchganga, Harishchandra, and above all Manikarnika—the eternal cremation ghat—reflect the fragile beauty of existence. It is believed that Lord Shiva blesses the departed here, granting them moksha, or liberation. Standing there, watching the rituals unfold, you become aware of life’s impermanence and the quiet truth that returning to nature is our final, peaceful chapter.

The city glows with countless temples—Kashi Vishwanath, Sankat Mochan, the Durga Temple, and many hidden gems tucked into narrow lanes. We visited the mysterious 40-foot-deep Pita Maheshwar Linga, the legendary Chandrakoop (the Well of Death), the powerful Vrieshwar Temple, the sacred Lolark Kund, and even saw the rare northward flow of the Ganga. Varanasi was also home to Maharshi Patanjali, the father of yoga and Ayurveda, making it a wellspring of ancient Indian knowledge. Even today, the 750-year-old Sapt Rishi Aarti continues—an unbroken chain of devotion.

Our five to six days in Varanasi were filled with discoveries—food, culture, history, rituals, stories—but beyond all of it, the city touched something deeper within us. Varanasi makes you meet yourself. Even amid thousands, there were moments when silence felt louder than the crowd. Walking past Manikarnika Ghat reminded us that life is both precious and temporary. At the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, we felt God’s presence—quiet yet powerful. Varanasi shows that whether rich or poor, everyone comes here seeking peace, meaning, and liberation.

Standing by the Ganga, watching her calm and dignified flow, we realised that life is beautiful—and that even its ending is just another gentle transition.

Banaras also delighted us with its flavours. The city’s mostly vegetarian street food is full of warmth—kachori with chana sabzi, golgappa, malai toast, palak patta chaat, samosa chaat, tamatar chaat, aloo tikki, chuda muttar, and every kind of paratha. Sweet lovers are spoilt with malaiyo, laal peda, jalebi-rabri, Banarasi lassi, thandai, kullad chai, and of course, the iconic Banarasi paan. We also indulged in shopping—pure Banarasi silk sarees, beautiful handicrafts, and metalwork from Thatheri Bazar and Dalmandi added to the experience.

Another unique tradition here is bhang, offered as prasad to Lord Shiva. Symbolising purity and surrender, bhang thandai is especially famous and deeply woven into the city’s spiritual culture.

Varanasi is where the past and present walk hand in hand. It teaches you to pause, breathe, and reconnect with life’s deeper purpose. This journey brought us closer to ourselves, to our beliefs, and to the truths that shape our lives.

One of my dreams was to take my daughter to Varanasi and show her the sacred places that form the foundation of our culture. I believe the next generation must understand their spiritual roots. This trip was my gift to her after her 12th standard. Watching her absorb the stories, rituals, and history filled my heart. She returned with a deeper connection to our heritage—something no classroom or textbook can teach.

And that is why Varanasi is not just a destination.

It is an experience—a blessing—that stays with you forever.

(The writer is a tourism professional and runs a company, Global Voyages. She could be contacted at goglobalvoyages@gmail.com. Views personal.)

The BJP’s Ganesha Gambit

Varanasi: A Journey That Touches the Soul

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