The kirtan of renowned kirtan singer Indurikar Maharaj in Pune was briefly halted on Friday night, December 12, by city police due to a severe traffic jam. The incident occurred in the Handewadi area, where a large number of devotees had gathered and were seated on the road to attend the kirtan, leading to a massive vehicular congestion.
According to reports, vehicles were lined up for several kilometres, stretching up to the Hadapsar area. After noticing the congestion, a police officer reached the spot and asked Indurikar Maharaj to pause the programme, stating that holding a kirtan on the road without permission was not allowed.
The officer explained that the event had caused heavy traffic snarls and requested that the road be cleared. Following this, volunteers and organisers appealed to the police and suggested allowing traffic to move from one side of the road. Using a microphone, the police requested the crowd to shift to one side, enabling the resumption of traffic flow.
The police officer was also heard saying that he had attended Indurikar Maharaj’s programmes in the past and held him in high regard. Chairs arranged for the audience were shifted to one side, while some people occupied vacant space near the stage. After coordination between the police, organisers and the gathered devotees, traffic was allowed on one side of the road. The kirtan then resumed smoothly, with vehicular movement continuing alongside. A video of the incident has since gone viral on social media.