Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday sent across a terse political message that she treated all religions with equal respect.

While the chief minister started her day by attending a meeting with Muslim clerics, her last official engagement of the day at Nabanna was to take stock of the preparations for the upcoming inauguration of the Jagannath temple in East Midnapore's Digha.

"Given the communally-charged situation in the state because of the riots and arson over the past few days in Murshidabad, it was necessary for the chief minister to present the right optics before the people as the political guardian of the state. Although both the meetings — one with the imams and the other for the Jagannath temple — had been fixed days ago, it was good that they were held on the same day," said a senior Trinamool Congress leader.

"Otherwise, the Opposition, particularly the BJP, would have exploited Didi's meeting with the imams to tag it as appeasement. This balancing act saved the day for her."

After the meeting with imams, the chief minister held a session at Nabanna in the afternoon to ensure that the inauguration of the Jagannath temple in Digha was held smoothly on April 30.

At Nabanna, senior officials of the government were present. Mamata laid stress on proper traffic and logistic arrangements for those who would visit the coastal town in East Midnapore district to offer prayers at the new temple.

She said efforts should be taken to avoid any kind of chaos, including stampedes.