Kolkata, Oct. 13 -- If there is one Durga Puja that has been in the news for all the wrong reasons this year, it is Tala Prattoy. Once again, Tala Prattoy found itself at the centre of a fresh controversy on Monday after several pandal-hoppers alleged that visitors were being charged to enter the pandal. In previous years, the Puja committee's name has come up over its commercial 'preview shows'.

This year, however, alleged sale of VIP passes during the festival has come under scrutiny following the BJP's rise to power. At a meeting with Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nand at Lalbazar, members of the Durga Puja Samanwaya Samiti reportedly said VIP passes should not be sold for money. Visitors said entry to the preview show required a Rs 223 payment through the District on the Zomato App. The tickets are available online, with each payment allowing entry for two people.

Puja organiser Shubhankar Saha, however, dismissed the allegations, describing them as misleading. "This gives the wrong impression. No money is being charged for entry. Artiste Sushanta Shibani Pal has composed a piece of music, and we had asked visitors to download it through an App and fill in the required details. There is a nominal charge for the download. In return, we provided two passes. Nobody is being allowed into the pandal by paying an entry fee," he said.

The confusion followed Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's inauguration of the north Kolkata Puja, conceptualised by artist Sushanta Shibani Pal on the theme of detachment. Praising the organisers, Adhikari said the Puja recreated a "homely, neighbourhood atmosphere". Local BJP MLA Ritesh Tewari was also present.

Tewari reiterated that the state government does not support charging for Puja pandal entry.

He said the preview shows continued until the inauguration but were stopped after he learnt about them. "No one who came for the inauguration had to pay a single rupee. Tala Prattoy's Puja belongs to the neighbourhood," he said.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.