Amit Shah offers prayers at Lord Jagannath Temple in Ahmedabad

Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the early hours of Thursday participated in a 'Mangala Aarti' at the historic Jagannath Temple here, ahead of the annual Gujarat Jagannath Rath Yatra.

Clad in a white shirt and yellow overcoat, Shah who was accompanied by his wife Sonal Shah offered prayers to Lord Jagannath

It is Shah's first visit to the state after he assumed office as Union Home Minister.

Shah was on a two-day visit to the city and innagurated a number of new projects here.

The 142nd Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra coincides with the Rath Yatra in Puri and began in the wee hours today.

The nine-day annual chariot festival begins amid tight security cover put in place along the different localities in the city, through which the procesion will pass through after commencing from the Lord Jagannath Temple in Jamalpur locality.

The about 450-year-old temple is famed for its Rath Yatra, which is counted among the third most important and largest after the Ratha Yatra at Puri.

-ANI