BHUBANESWAR: Servitors of
Puri Jagannath temple met chief minister
Naveen Patnaik here on Sunday and sought the state government's support to reject the Supreme Court's suggestion on giving access to people of all religious beliefs into the shrine. For years, the
Jagannath temple allows the entry of only Hindus into it. The servitors also expressed their displeasure over the Puri judge's suggestion to the apex court to abolish the hereditary priesthood in the shrine.
A delegation of 22 servitors accompanied by Puri MLA and revenue minister
Maheswar Mohanty and Puri Lok Sabha member Pinaki Mishra discussed with Naveen at his residence for about 15 minutes. The discussion revolved around the slew of reforms, suggested by the Supreme Court in its interim orders on June 8 and July 5. "We categorically told the chief minister that the Supreme Court’s suggestion on allowing people of all religious beliefs to the shrine cannot be implemented at all. There should not be any debate on the issue as there will be religious crisis if the age-old tradition is altered," said Ramachandra Singhari, president of Singhari Nijog, an association of servitors of Jagannath temple.
Puri MP, Mishra said that the chief minister assured to help the servitors in keeping the tradition of Jagannath temple alive. "The CM termed the request of the sevayats (servitors) fair and reasonable and assured that the government will provide all possible help to them," Mishra told media persons. Mishra said that the Supreme Court was not properly communicated about the unique and age-old tradition, involving hereditary system of worship by sevayats. "I hope that the amicus curiae of the case, Gopal Subramanium soon visit Puri and listen to the grievances of all stakeholders, including servitors,” Mishra said, adding that a three-member committee, formed by the state government as per the direction of Supreme Court to study the managements of other important shrines in the country, should also listen to the grievances of servitors and submit a report to the court. Senior IAS officer and former chief administrator of Jagannath temple administration, Suresh Mohapatra heads the committee.
The servitors also drew the attention of Odisha CM about the Puri district administration’s false allegation that some priests had misbehaved with the President
Ram Nath Kovind and his wife Savita during their maiden visit to the shrine on March 18. The servitors sought action against Puri collector Aravind Agarwal and Jagannath temple’s former chief administrator Pradeep Kumar Jena for allegedly making the false charges against them at a meeting on March 20.
Meanwhile, members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad staged a silent protest outside Jagannath temple, expressing their displeasure over the Supreme Court’s proposal on allowing people of all faiths to the shrine.
