Orissa HC directs Puri Jagannath temple admin to open Jagamohan by April 16

CUTTACK

: The Orissa high court on Tuesday directed the Jagannath Temple administration in Puri to re-open the Jagamohan, hall facing the sanctum sanctorum, for devotees by April 16.

A bench of Chief Justice

Vineet Saran

and Justice B R Sarangi has directed the temple administration to file a compliance report by April 19 after re-opening the Jagamohan, which has been kept out of bounds for devotees since 2016 when Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) took up its repair works.

Notably, the ASI on March 6 submitted a detailed report in high court, which has been monitoring repair work of the shrine, that it has completed repair works of Jagamohan and it can be opened for public. Since then the court has asked the Puri temple administration several times to notify an exact date for re-opening of the Jagamohan but the temple authorities have been delaying the matter by giving different excuses.

The re-opening of the Jagamohan is necessary as after its opening devotees can use the route to enter the shrine and the Nata Mandap, another section of the temple, will be closed for repair work by ASI. The Nata Mandap is in distressed condition and needs urgent repair and ASI has already submitted an affidavit in this regard, said ASI’s counsel, Chandra Kant Pradhan.

Even on Tuesday morning when hearing of the case started the temple’s chief ritual administration Pradip Das filed an affidavit citing that they will be able to open Jagamohan after August 1 as from April 18 the rituals of Rath Yatra will start and it would be difficult on their part to re-open the Jagamohan.

Taking strong note of the dilly dally attitude of temple administration on Jaganmohan reopening, the high court rejected the plea and directed Pradip Das to appear before the bench personally by noon. “In pursuance of the high court’s order, Das appeared and court strictly directed him to make all necessary arrangements to reopen Jagamohan by April 16,” said petitioner’s counsel, Ashok Mohapatra.

Besides, the high court has also approved one of the recommendations mentioned by Justice B P Das Commission, formed for bringing in reforms in the shrine, in its interim report that no one other than servitors who have rituals to perform inside ‘

Garbha Gruha

’ will be allowed beyond into it. “The court has directed the temple administration to follow the recommendation,” added Mohapatra.