The Ahmedabad Congress has asked the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to organise a five- to six-day Diwali festival at Kankaria Lake, including cultural programmes and free entry for all citizens. The demand was made in a written representation to the municipal commissioner on October 31, 2026.
The proposal seeks a public celebration at Kankaria modelled on the annual Kankaria Carnival, which the civic body organises during the Christmas period. Congress state general secretary Rajesh Soni has asked the AMC to hold a separate “Diwali Dipotsav” from Diwali through Labh Pancham, with programmes planned around different themes.
According to the representation, the proposed festival should include entertainment activities for children and families, along with cultural performances over five or six consecutive days. The demand also calls for completely free admission so that residents do not face a ticket cost while attending the event.
Soni said in the representation that many Ahmedabad residents travel outside the city during the Diwali holiday. The Congress argued that a free festival at Kankaria could give families an opportunity to celebrate within Ahmedabad instead of travelling elsewhere. The proposal is particularly framed around access for poor and middle-class families.
Kankaria Lake is one of Ahmedabad’s major public recreation spaces and already hosts large-scale civic programming through the annual carnival. The Congress has sought a similar city-level arrangement for Diwali, with the lakefront serving as the venue for family activities and cultural events. The representation does not, however, confirm that the AMC has accepted the proposal or allocated funds for it.
The Congress cited the AMC’s annual budget of approximately Rs 18,000 crore while asking the civic body to consider the event as a Diwali gift for Ahmedabad residents. The demand places the decision within the municipal corporation’s broader responsibility for public spaces, civic amenities and cultural programming.
Any event of this scale would require the AMC to determine the programme, duration, entry arrangements, operational costs and crowd-management plan. The representation supplied in the report does not provide details of a proposed budget, participating departments, security arrangements, traffic measures or a formal implementation schedule.
The immediate next step is for the municipal commissioner to consider the written request. No official announcement confirming a Diwali festival at Kankaria Lake had been reported in the supplied material.
