Puri: The row over the alleged sale of Bagala Dharmashala land in the Holy City here refused to die down even though the administration issued a clarification in this regard Saturday.
The youth wing of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Puri district unit of CPI (M) Sunday held separate demonstrations to protest the alleged sale of Bagala Dharmashala land to a few lodging house owners who had been evicted for the construction of a heritage corridor around Srimandir.
BJP Yuva Morcha activists led by their Puri district president Jayanta Dash held a protest meet in front of Bagala Dharmashala. Participating in the meeting, BJP state unit vice-president Pravati Parida criticised the state government and the district administration for selling the shelter house land to lodging house owners.
“Kanheiyalal Bagala, a benevolent person, had set up the dharmashala for providing shelter facility to poor devotees who come to Puri to visit Srimandir. Bagala had donated the dharmashala to the administration. The state government and the district administration have no right to sell the donated property,” Parida said.
She also asked the district administration to cancel its land sale deeds with the lodging house owners. Among others, BJP’s Puri district unit president Ashrit Patnaik and his predecessor Pravanjana Mahapatra were present at the protest meet.
Similarly, CPM activists led by party’s Puri district secretary Sarat Rayguru held a demonstration in front of Bagala Dharmashala and vowed to intensify their agitation over the alleged land sale. “A PIL on Bagala Dharmashala is pending in the High Court. How could the administration sell the dharmashala land to private parties? It should immediately cancel its sale deeds with the private parties,” Rayguru said.
Among others, CPM leaders Jagannath Deo, Purnachandra Muduli, Yamini Mishra and Bibhuti Routray participated in the demonstration.
Meanwhile, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) youth wing leader Subhashis Khuntia urged political parties to cooperate with the state government for its plan to make Puri a heritage city. “The state government is moving ahead with its developmental plan for Puri. Parties should not do politics on the issue. The state government is making all arrangement to provide shelter facilities to poor devotees,” he said.
Earlier, the district administration claimed that it had not sold the shelter house land to anyone. In a press statement, the administration Saturday claimed that it has only rehabilitated a few evicted Srimandir servitors and other individuals on the dharmashala land for smooth implementation of the heritage corridor project.
