Gross irregularities committed during 'Brahma Parivartan' of Lord Jagannath: SJTA

The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Thursday said "gross irregularities" were committed in 'Brahma Parivartan' ritual during the Nabakalebara festival in 2015.

The SJTA chief administrator P K Mohapatra said stringent action will be taken against the erring servitors. The mischief mongers have been identified and the SJTA will soon issue notices to them, he said.

'Brahma Parivartan' is the most secret ritual of Nabakalebara festival during which the old idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Sudarshan are changed with new ones. "The soul substance of the old idols are secretly put in the new idols," said Rabindra Mishra, a researcher in Jagannath Culture.

Former chief administrator of the SJTA, S C Mohapatra was asked to give a report on the gross irregularities committed during the 'Brahma Parivartan' of Lord Jagannath during Nabakalebera festival in 2015, officials said.

The temple managing committee headed by Gajapati Maharaj of Puri, Dibyasingha Deb went through the report and has given its nod for action against the erring servitors, Mohapatra said.

"About 10-15 servitors are found guilty in the Brahma Parivartan of the Lords. They might be either the Daitapati or the Maharana servitors against whom exemplary action would be taken under Section 21 (b) of the Sri Jagannath Temple Administration Act," he said.

The SJTA chief administrator, however, made it clear that the report would not be made public.

"It is a very very sensitive matter. Therefore, the report on the irregularities during the Brahma Parivartan cannot be made public. Even the report will not be available under Right to Information Act," P K Mohapatra told reporters.