Shankaracharya toughens stance against SC order, says ‘evil plan’ hatched to ‘sabotage’ Rath

Bhubaneswar: With just a day left for the Supreme Court to take up a raft of petitions seeking a review of its decision to cancel the Rath Yatra, Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati on Sunday said he suspected an ‘evil plan’ was afoot to ‘sabotage’ the festival.
The Shankaracharya fell short of naming or blaming anyone directly, but in a video message on Sunday, he expressed displeasure at the apex court’s decision to cancel the Rath Yatra in Puri and elsewhere in Odisha because of the pandemic.
“A number of people and organisations promptly moved the Supreme Court and filed applications seeking reconsideration of the order. The apex court could have considered the applications on June 20 (Saturday). Now, time is running out and only one day is left for the Rath Yatra. It seems a well-planned design was hatched to stop the Rath Yatra,” the Shankaracharya said.
Although the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the petitions on Monday, the Shankaracharya said they could have been heard on Saturday or Sunday. “There are provisions for the Supreme Court to take up urgent matters for hearing on vacations and holidays,” the religious leader said.
The Shankaracharya’s stance on Sunday marks a departure from his earlier reaction to the Supreme Court’s order. The seer had then said the court’s decision was understandable in the context of public health and safety, while urging it to review its order.
Meanwhile, Puri’s titular king and chairman of the Jagannath Temple managing committee, Dibyasingha Deb, who also drew flak for failing to pursue the matter seriously, wrote to chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday and urged the government to immediately file a review petition in the Supreme Court.
The Daitapati Nijog, an association of servitors of the Jagannath Temple, said their application for a review should be considered by the apex court. “The government could not convince the court that the Rath Yatra could be held without devotees. In our petition, we have highlighted that all the servitors tested negative for Covid-19 in the run-up to the June 5 Debasnan Purnima. The administration smoothly conducted Debasnan Purnima by banning public congregation. The same can be done for the Rath Yatra,” Nijog secretary Durga Dasmohapatra said.