Odisha HC asks govt, SJTA to settle temple deadlock amicably

The Orissa High Court today expressed displeasure at the irregularities in rituals at the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri and said it had at no point of time interfered with the rituals of its presiding deities.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Vineet Saran said the state government and the temple administration should immediately settle the issue amicably after holding discussions with the stakeholders.

The devotees visiting the temple for last four days have been deprived of 'Mahaprasad' due to dispute between servitors and the temple administration.

The high court has been monitoring the repair undertaken by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in the 12th-century shrine since 2016, while adjudicating over a PIL seeking judicial intervention for effective repair and renovation of the temple.

"About the high court's order passed on April 10 pertaining to restrictions of entry of servitors and devotees into the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, it said the relevant portion of its order was misinterpreted by the temple administration," said senior advocate Ashok Mohapatra, who is the petitioner-advocate in this case.

The high court on April 10 had asked the administration of the temple to open by April 16 the prayer hall for devotees which had been out of bounds for over two years for repair works.

The temple administration in an affidavit informed the court that the devotees were allowed darshan of the deities from Jagamohan (assembly hall) since April 16.

The bench had on April 10 asked the temple administration to file an affidavit in the court today stating the procedures followed for complying with its orders.