Allegation of mismanagement of crowds at the Lalbaugcha Raja Ganesha in Parel, Mumbai's most-visited venue Ganeshotsav venue, and the organisers' preferential treatment of 'VIP' visitors, has led to a backlash in the social media against the pandal's volunteers and organisers.
Family Members Injured in Chaos
One group of devotees visiting the pandal from Surat said they had a 'horrible' experience at the pandal. In a social media post, the family accused the pandal of mismanagement and lack of humanity. They accused the pandal attendants of humiliating devotees by pushing them around as they waited for darshan.
“Today my family and I travelled from Surat to Mumbai for Charan Darshan at Lalbaugcha Raja. What should have been a spiritual experience turned into a nightmare of mismanagement and inhumanity,” said a member of the group in a post.
He added that his sister sustained a head injury due to the uncontrolled crowd. “My mother’s kurti sleeves were torn, and her hand could’ve got a major deep cut, she was violently pushed by staff. My father fainted inside due to suffocation. Shockingly, neither the Mandal management nor the Mumbai police bothered to help, provide water, or clear the crowd, he said.
VIPs Get Special Treatment
He noted that celebrities are ushered in by the volunteers after clearing the area of ordinary visitors. “Ordinary devotees who travel miles in faith are treated like cattle. We had to leave without darshan because of my father’s condition,” he added, noting that despite the donation and jewelry gifts the pandal gets every year, there is no basic crowd control, drinking water, or medical aid.
Balasaheb Kamble, chairman of the Lalbaugcha Raja Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal, declined to comment on the accusations, saying that he was busy managing the crowds.
This is not the first time this year the pandal has attracted criticism in the social media. Earlier, the mandal had issued a clarification that it does not issue any VIP darshan passes or charge money for darshan. This was after social media posts reported that the pandal was planning to charge fees to those who do not want to queue up for hours for a darshan.
Voices of Discontent on Social Media
Another devotee said cynically: 'Lord left that place long ago, people should too.'. One person compared the warm treatment given to 'VIP' guests who are whisked into the pandal by the security while ordinary devotees who have been braving the crowds for hours watched in silent anger. The visitor called the experience ' VIP versus peasant queues', in an obvious comparison to the business versus cattle class treatment of air passengers.
Organisers Remain Silent
A devotee who visited the pandal in 2022 said he and his wife waited for more than four hours for a darshan and suffered indignity in the process. “And then getting out of there was an absolute nightmare, we were stuck in a stampede-like situation,” the devotee said, adding that he resolved never to visit the pandal again. Another visitor accused the organisers of arrogance and treating devotees disrespectfully by screaming at them and pushing them around.
