Lingaraj Temple Makar Sankranti rituals halted: Orissa HC stays collector's order on sevayat rights

Cuttack: Orissa high court has stayed an order issued by the Khurda collector, acting as president of Shree Lingaraj Temple Trust, relating to the performance of a key ritual during Makar Sankranti, thus halting celebrations at the shrine for the second consecutive year.The court held that the collector lacked the statutory authority to decide disputes over ‘sevayat’ (servitor) rights and observed that allowing such an order could lead to future complications.The division bench of Justices K R Mohapatra and S K Mishra issued the interim order on Monday on a petition filed by sevayat Kamalakanta Badu challenging the order dated Dec 24, 2025, of the collector. The order dealt with the long-standing dispute between two groups of sevayats — the Badu and Brahman nijogs — over performing ‘Dugdha Melana’ during the ‘Nabanka Bedha Niti’, a ritual observed a day before Makar Sankranti, which falls on Wednesday.The impugned order had held that the Brahman (pasupalak) sevayats would perform ‘Dugdha Melana’, while the Badu Nijog servitors would perform ‘Ghruta Kamala’ on the morning of Makar Sankranti. The petitioner clarified that the Badu sevayats had no objection to ‘Ghruta Kamala’, but challenged the decision regarding ‘Dugdha Melana’.After hearing all parties, the court held that the collector, even in his capacity as president of the temple trust, cannot adjudicate disputes over sevayat rights. Noting the likelihood of future disputes if the order were allowed to stand, the court directed that the Dec 24 order be kept in abeyance until further consideration.The matter has been listed for further hearing on Feb 26, with the parties allowed to file their counter affidavits in the meantime.“Neither was the Ghruta Kamala prepared or the Nabanka Bedha Niti carried out. So, the ritual on Wednesday will not be carried out,” said Biranchi Narayan Pati, head of Brahman Nijog.Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Amiya Kumar Mishra submitted that while the collector took up the issue to ensure smooth conduct of the festival, he went beyond his jurisdiction by adjudicating rights relating to temple rituals. Mishra argued that under Section 41 of the Odisha Hindu Religious Endowments Act, 1951, only the assistant commissioner of endowments, Bhubaneswar, is empowered to decide disputes concerning niti and sevayat rights. Since the ritual was scheduled for Jan 13, the petitioner approached the HC citing urgency.Advocate Suvendu Kar, representing Lord Lingaraj, submitted before the court that the president of the temple trust does not have the competence to settle such rights. However, he requested that the order be allowed to operate for the ensuing Makar Sankranti, citing the need for uninterrupted rituals. Supporting this view, advocate Bishal Baivab, appearing for the Brahman Nijog Samiti, sought time to file a detailed counter affidavit.Till 2024, the ritual was performed by Badu Nijog members. But in 2025, Mahasuar Nijog servitors insisted that they perform ‘Ghruta Kamala’, as a result of which the ritual was stalled for two days. Subsequently, the then Khurda collector ordered that the ritual should be performed by Brahman Nijog members. Challenging this, Kamalakanta Badu filed the petition in HC.(With inputs from Diana Sahu in Bhubaneswar)