SJTA questions senior servitor over ‘use’ of Puri shrine wood for Digha temple idols | Bhubaneswar News
Bhubaneswar: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) on Sunday questioned Ramakrushna Dasmohapatra, a senior servitor of Puri Jagannath Temple, regarding his alleged claim about surplus wood from Puri shrine being used to make the idols at the Digha temple.
A show-cause notice has been served, asking him to reply on the issue within seven days, failing which action will be taken against him, the SJTA informed.
Dasmohapatra, who is secretary of the temple’s Daitapati Nijog, took part in the inauguration ceremony of the Digha Jagannath shrine on April 30. Dasmohapatra was questioned for about an hour by SJTA officials, including chief administrator Arabinda Padhee, in Puri.
On April 30, during a television interview in Kolkata, Dasmohapatra had allegedly said, “I facilitated the creation of the idols for the Digha temple. I got them built in Puri from the leftover sacred neem wood that was used for crafting the idols of Puri temple during 2015 Nabakalebara. I installed the idols at the Digha Jagannath temple.”
Following widespread criticism from servitors and devotees, Dasmohapatra claimed he was misquoted. “My remarks were misinterpreted. I admit that I helped to create the idols for the Digha temple. But those idols were not made out of the sacred neem wood of Puri temple. I had arranged normal neem wood on my own,” Dasmohapatra told journalists in Puri on Friday.
Craftsmen of Puri Jagannath Temple, however, dismissed claims regarding the use of excess wood from the shrine to build the idols for the Digha temple. The craftsmen said surplus neem wood stored after creating new idols during the 2015 Nabakalebara were too small, measuring between 3 and 10 inches, making them unsuitable for constructing idols.
“We suspect that bits and pieces of neem wood from the Puri temple may have been mixed with timber to make the Digha shrine’s idols. If that happened, it is illegal,” a carpenter said.
Temple sources said pieces of wood were kept in Daru Gruha (log storeroom) at Koili Baikuntha garden on the shrine premises. Daitapati Nijog maintains the Daru Gruha.
An SJTA said they are examining servitors’ attendance at the ceremony and their suspected involvement in the rituals at the Digha temple.
Law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said the situation created by some of the servitors has become a sentimental issue. “There is no bar on servitors visiting other temples. But conducting ‘puja’ in another place is unethical. During the ongoing inquiry, if any servitor is found guilty, action will be taken,” Harichandan said.
On Sunday, social outfit Jagannath Sena filed a complaint at Singhadwar police station against Dasmohapatra and temple officials, alleging theft of leftover neem wood for the Digha temple idols. A police official said no case has been registered and that they are verifying the allegations.
An SJTA official, however, claimed, “We have not found any evidence of theft of surplus wood till now.”
A show-cause notice has been served, asking him to reply on the issue within seven days, failing which action will be taken against him, the SJTA informed.
Dasmohapatra, who is secretary of the temple’s Daitapati Nijog, took part in the inauguration ceremony of the Digha Jagannath shrine on April 30. Dasmohapatra was questioned for about an hour by SJTA officials, including chief administrator Arabinda Padhee, in Puri.
On April 30, during a television interview in Kolkata, Dasmohapatra had allegedly said, “I facilitated the creation of the idols for the Digha temple. I got them built in Puri from the leftover sacred neem wood that was used for crafting the idols of Puri temple during 2015 Nabakalebara. I installed the idols at the Digha Jagannath temple.”
Following widespread criticism from servitors and devotees, Dasmohapatra claimed he was misquoted. “My remarks were misinterpreted. I admit that I helped to create the idols for the Digha temple. But those idols were not made out of the sacred neem wood of Puri temple. I had arranged normal neem wood on my own,” Dasmohapatra told journalists in Puri on Friday.
Craftsmen of Puri Jagannath Temple, however, dismissed claims regarding the use of excess wood from the shrine to build the idols for the Digha temple. The craftsmen said surplus neem wood stored after creating new idols during the 2015 Nabakalebara were too small, measuring between 3 and 10 inches, making them unsuitable for constructing idols.
“We suspect that bits and pieces of neem wood from the Puri temple may have been mixed with timber to make the Digha shrine’s idols. If that happened, it is illegal,” a carpenter said.
Temple sources said pieces of wood were kept in Daru Gruha (log storeroom) at Koili Baikuntha garden on the shrine premises. Daitapati Nijog maintains the Daru Gruha.
An SJTA said they are examining servitors’ attendance at the ceremony and their suspected involvement in the rituals at the Digha temple.
Law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said the situation created by some of the servitors has become a sentimental issue. “There is no bar on servitors visiting other temples. But conducting ‘puja’ in another place is unethical. During the ongoing inquiry, if any servitor is found guilty, action will be taken,” Harichandan said.
On Sunday, social outfit Jagannath Sena filed a complaint at Singhadwar police station against Dasmohapatra and temple officials, alleging theft of leftover neem wood for the Digha temple idols. A police official said no case has been registered and that they are verifying the allegations.
An SJTA official, however, claimed, “We have not found any evidence of theft of surplus wood till now.”
