Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Sambit Patra, a BJP leader who stirred up controversy with his comments on Lord Jagannath, said he was sorry for his “slip of the tongue” and that he would fast for three days to make amends in Lord Jagannath’s honor. According to Patra, the BJP candidate running for the Puri Lok Sabha seat, “Lord Jagannath is a devotee (bhakt) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” On Monday, this statement caused a stir in Odisha. Afterwards, he called it a “slip of the tongue.”
Patra shared a video on social media platform X around 1 am, apologising for his mistake regarding Lord Jagannath. He wrote, “Today, I am deeply distressed by the mistake I made regarding Lord Jagannath. I bow my head at the feet of Lord Jagannath and apologise. To atone for my error and repentance, I will observe a fast for the next three days.”
Sambit Patra, a BJP leader who stirred up controversy with his comments on Lord Jagannath, said he was sorry for his “slip of the tongue” and that he would fast for three days to make amends in Lord Jagannath’s honor.
Patra, the BJP candidate from Puri Lok Sabha seat, landed in a row in Odisha on Monday after he told a local news channel that “Lord Jagannath is a devotee (bhakt) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” He later described it as a “slip of the tongue.”
Patra shared a video on social media platform X around 1 am, apologising for his mistake regarding Lord Jagannath. He wrote, “Today, I am deeply distressed by the mistake I made regarding Lord Jagannath. I bow my head at the feet of Lord Jagannath and apologise. To atone for my error and repentance, I will observe a fast for the next three days.”
“During Narendra Modi’s visit to Puri, I was conversing with many media friends amidst the large crowd on the Grand Road of Puri. While speaking to a media friend in this sea of people, I mistakenly said ‘Modi’s devotee Jagannath’ instead of ‘Lord Jagannath’s devotee Modi.’ For this mistake, I prostrate myself at the feet of Lord Jagannath and seek forgiveness. To repent for this error, I will fast for the next three days,” he added.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Patra clarified, “This is not possible; no person in his right mind can say that God is a devotee of any human being. The mistake happened unknowingly while giving out bytes to a channel. I agree that the sentiments of some people have been hurt due to my statement, but even the lord forgives a person for committing a mistake unknowingly.
“It was never my intention to commit this mistake, but still because Mahaprabhu Jagannath is the Lord of the Universe and I am an ardent devotee just like the hundreds and thousands of Odias, I feel I should convey my apology and offer penance to the Lord for a ‘slip of the tongue’ that occurred unknowingly,” he added.
