When some videos of the 'Devbhoomi Cultural Festival-2026' held at Badrinath Dham on 19 and 20 September went viral on social media, questions were raised as to why such an event with loud music and DJ took place in the area adjacent to the temple.
But the controversy was not limited to the format of the programme. The question now is who gave permission for this event, who planned it and whose responsibility was it?
Earlier it was said that the program was jointly organized by Chamoli district administration and the Indian Army. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also participated in the program.
But after the controversy, Chamoli District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar said that the administration had no role in the selection and format of cultural programs and no prior permission was taken from it. The administration has sought answers from the army in this regard.
On the other hand, according to senior journalist Surendra Rawat, who covered the event at the local level, there was no protest on the spot during the event.
According to him, the controversy started after September 21, when videos of the program went viral on social media.
In this entire matter, the pilgrim priests and saints have raised the question of the dignity of the Dham.
Whereas Uttarakhand's Endowments and Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj told BBC News Hindi, "There is no tradition-based complete ban on music and cultural programs in Badrinath."
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However, he did not respond to other questions related to the organization of the program and the controversy.
This means that this program of Badrinath is no longer just a dispute over the songs of a DJ or an artist.
There is a big question at the center of this - after all, whose responsibility was it to organize this event and if there is any mistake, who will take responsibility for it?
Badrinath program and controversy on social media
'Devbhoomi Cultural Festival-2026' was organized at the Tourist Arrival Plaza of Badrinath on 19 and 20 September.
The program was linked to the Vibrant Village Scheme and the culture of marginal villages with the theme 'Our Heritage, Our Future'. It talked about promoting local culture, folk traditions, local products and tourism.
In the program, along with programs related to school children, university students, local artists and army, there was also a presentation by state singer Priyanka Mehar.
No major protests came to light during the program. But later videos of the program started circulating on social media. These had loud sound systems, DJs and dance scenes.
After this, questions started arising that what should be the nature of such a program so close to a religious and spiritual place like Badrinath?
The controversy gained further prominence when senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Murli Manohar Joshi, who was in the BJP's "Margdarshak Mandal", raised objections to the program on social media.
He wrote on social media platform
He wrote, "Adi Guru Shankaracharya established Badrinath Dham in the peaceful environment of the Himalayan environment for Bhagavad Bhajan and Sadhana. Organizing noisy musical programs in a place where even blowing of conch is traditionally banned is contrary to Indian spiritual, cultural and environmental values."
He alleged, "This situation is a symbol of gradually pushing Devbhoomi towards market culture".
He appealed to the followers of Indian culture, Shankaracharyas and saints and mahatmas to raise their effective voice on this issue.
Also urged the Central and State Governments to maintain the dignity and spiritual nature of Devbhoomi by banning such events.
After this statement, questions started being raised from the pilgrim priests, saints and the opposition also.
But along with this, another question also came up – Is it against tradition to have a musical or cultural program in Badrinath?
Opinions are not uniform on this.
Question of 'dham ki maryada', but is there a complete ban on music?
Dr. Brijesh Sati, General Secretary of Uttarakhand Char Dham Teerth Purohit Mahapanchayat, said in a conversation with BBC News Hindi, "We Mahapanchayat do not have any objection to the objective of the program, but have questions on its form and presentation."
He says that programs should be organized keeping in mind the religious, spiritual and mythological beliefs of Badrinath Dham.
Dr. Sati says, "When the order for a meeting regarding the program was issued by the district administration on September 9 and a review meeting was held on September 11, it should be clear who prepared the outline of the program and who was responsible for organizing it?"
He also mentions another cultural program held in Badrinath before the doors opened on April 16 and demands a clear policy to avoid such a situation in future.
Swami Pratyaquetanya Mukundanand Giri, associated with Jyotirmath and a disciple of Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, also raises questions on the nature of the program.
In his video statement sent to BBC News Hindi, he said, "Local culture, food, clothes and display of military valor are important in their place, but programs like dance with big DJs and loudspeakers are not in accordance with the religious tradition and dignity of Badrinath."
He says that people come to the Himalayas for peace, meditation and spiritual experience and the government should make clear arrangements for such events in pilgrimage areas.
But State Endowments and Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj sees the matter differently.
He says that "the religious belief related to the use of conch shell in the worship tradition of Badrinath temple cannot be seen as a complete ban on music in the Dham."
According to Satpal Maharaj, "Music has also been a medium of devotion and worship in Badrinath."
He gives the example of the presence of an army band at the time of opening and closing of doors, in which drums and bagpipes are played.
He says that songs, dance and musical instruments have been used in the folk traditions of Uttarakhand and there is no such universal ban on music or cultural programs in the Dham.
In this way, part of the controversy is linked to the interpretation of religious tradition. The question is not just whether music can take place or not, but also what kind of music, at what level of sound and at what venue the event should be allowed.
No protest during program, questions after video goes viral
Chamoli's senior journalist Surendra Rawat saw the program from the spot and also reported it at the local level.
According to him, school children from Srinagar and Gopeshwar, students of Srinagar University and bands gave performances in the programme. Singer Priyanka Mehar's program also took place between 2 to 3 pm on September 19.
According to Surendra K Rawat, there was no protest at the local level during the program and the people present there enjoyed the presentations.
He says that if there was any objection to the format of the program then the question should have been to the organizers and not to any individual artist.
According to him, the organizers should have set clear guidelines for the artists in advance and there should also have been a limit on the intensity of the sound system.
He also says that after the program, especially from September 21, videos started circulating on social media and after that the voices of protest intensified.
According to Surendra, local artist Kishan Mahipal also performed in the program, but a major part of the controversy on social media centered around Priyanka Mehar's performance.
He said, "Earlier, a song sung by Priyanka Mehar regarding Urgam Valley was in controversy and at that time it was reported that there were protests at the local level and a case was registered against her."
According to him, "This old dispute could also be a possible context to influence the current protest."
However, no independent evidence has emerged to show this old dispute as the reason for the current protest.
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Now the most important part of this whole matter is administrative responsibility.
According to Chamoli DM Gaurav Kumar, "The program of September 19 and 20 was organized by the Army. On the request of the Army, the district administration had set up stalls to provide information about the schemes of the Central and State Government related to Mana and Bamani villages."
DM says that selection of cultural presentations, inviting artists, scheduling of programs and their payment, all this happened at the army level.
No prior permission was taken from the district administration for this.
For this reason, the administration has issued a notice to the army and sought answers as to why such a program was organized without the prior permission of the local administration.
But according to senior journalist Surendra, it is important to understand the difference between 'permission' and 'information'.
According to him, in the administrative records, it is mentioned that the Army had informed the district administration i.e. DM and SP about organizing the program, but no application was made for formal permission.
That is, the administration being aware of the event and taking formal permission for the event cannot be considered as the same thing.
If an application for formal permission had been made, the administration could have decided the terms and conditions for the program.
This is where the question of responsibility becomes more complex.
On one hand the DM says that permission was not taken from the administration for cultural programs.
On the other hand, there was presence of the administration before and during the event, the Chief Minister attended the event and the public government information talked about the joint auspices of the Army and the district administration.
So was the role of administration limited only to the stall of government schemes? Or was the administration involved at some level with the complete details of the event and its outline?
Clear answers to these questions are yet to be received from the official side of the army.
Organized in the name of Maana, but why in Badrinath?
One end of this dispute is also connected to Mana village. It is situated at a distance of about three and a half to four kilometers from Badrinath Dham.
This village also got special recognition a few years ago because Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given it the status of the first village of the country.
Former head of Mana, Pitamber Molfa, says on this controversy that if the program was related to the vibrant village Mana and its culture, then it should have been organized in Mana.
According to him, "He had made a similar demand to the organizers last year also."
He says that in 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's program was also held in Mana, not in Badrinath.
Pitambar Molfa says, "If the same event had taken place in Mana, the local people would have welcomed it."
But an interesting aspect also comes to light in this matter.
According to senior journalist Surendra, Pitambar Molfa himself was also involved in the 'Pauna dance' organized to welcome the Chief Minister.
That is, he had objections regarding the venue of the event, but he also participated in the program related to welcoming the Chief Minister.
This contradiction raises the question of when and over what issues disagreements actually emerged at the local level.
What does Congress have to say?
Congress spokesperson Garima Dasauni has described the program as not in accordance with religious and cultural norms.
He told BBC News Hindi that the administration cannot now retreat from its role by saying that it was not aware of the event.
She claims that there was correspondence regarding the program on September 9 and it is difficult to accept that the administration was not aware of the program in which the Chief Minister was present.
She also questions the songs and loud music played in the programme. However, he says that his question is not about any artist, but about the selection of the place and its format for the program.
On the other hand, Satpal Maharaj says that it is not right to talk about a complete ban on music or cultural events in Badrinath.
That is, here too two different questions are being linked to each other, was it wrong to have the program itself, or did the format of the program and the sound system become the cause of controversy?
The question is not just about DJ but about accountability.
One side is looking at it by linking it to the religious and mythological dignity of the Dham. The other side is saying that there is no complete ban on music and cultural presentations in the tradition of Badrinath.
According to the local journalist, there was no protest during the program and the controversy started after the video surfaced on social media.
The administration says that the cultural programs were decided by the army and prior permission was not taken. At the same time, in the public information before the event, the participation of both the army and the district administration was mentioned.
The former head of Mana is in favor of organizing the event in Mana, while he also participated in welcoming the Chief Minister during the program.
Amidst all these contradictions one thing is clear. Any big event at a religious place like Badrinath cannot be just a matter of artists performing on stage.
There should be accountability at every level - selection of venue, permission process, format of the program, limit of sound system, guidelines for artists and administrative monitoring.
And perhaps this is the most important question of this entire controversy.
If permission was not taken for the event, who was responsible for stopping it from happening?
And if the administration was aware of it, the Chief Minister participated in it and at the government level it was described as a joint initiative of the Army and the administration, then why is the responsibility falling on only one party after the dispute?
To know the official side of the Army in this matter, BBC News Hindi talked to the PRO of the Army in Dehradun. He said that "the Army's statement will be shared when it comes."
At present, this controversy of Badrinath has gone far beyond the songs of an artist.
The question now is what can be organized in Badrinath, who will decide what is appropriate and who will be held accountable if the limits are crossed?
