 |
| Devidhura's Bagwal festival attracts people from Kumaon, Nepal, and other places. (Stone pelting video below) |
Staff correspondent, August 30, 2015, NewCrunch
On Saturday, when the rest of India celebrated Raksha Bandhan by tying rakhi, the villagers at Devidhura in Champawat district of Uttarakhand took part in their annual stone pelting Bagwal festival.
As the Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat watched, two groups of devotees threw stones at each other. The large wooden shields they had built to protect themselves were not of much use and media reports say nearly 150 people were injured.
Located at 45 kms from Lohaghat in the Champawat district of Uttarakhand, Devidhura's Bagwal festival attracts people from Kumaon, Nepal, and other places.
Bagwal festival starts with the worship of local goddess Barahi, whose idol from a temple is brought out in the open. It is then the devotees pelt stones at each other to please goddess Barahi.