A bulldozer led a rath yatra taken out by the Jagannath temple in the Nana Mava area of Gujarat’s Rajkot on Tuesday. A banner reading ‘Sanatani bulldozer’ was tied to the bulldozer’s loading bucket.

“In this special rath yatra, there is a Sanatani bulldozer. The significance and objective of the bulldozer are to protect and promote Sanatan Dharma,” Manmohandas, the head priest at Jagannath temple in Rajkot, said, The Indian Express reported.

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At around 9.30 am, the yatra was kicked off after former Chief Minister Vijay Rupani performed pooja of deities at the temple. In the religious procession, idols of Lord Jagannath or Lord Krishna, his brother Balbhadra and sister Subhadra are placed in chariots and taken around the city.

The 26 km yatra is scheduled to pass through the main roads of Rajkot before culminating at the Jagannath temple later in the evening.

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Raju Junja, a local BJP worker among the leading volunteers for organising the rath yatra of Jagannath temple, said the bulldozer was included in the cavalcade to send a message of unity, IE reported.

Former CM Vijay Rupani said that the city is known for celebrating festivals enthusiastically and that there will be processions during the upcoming festival of Janamashtami.