Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the Bahuda Yatra, Opposition BJD Friday demanded a judicial inquiry into alleged gross mismanagement during this year’s Ratha Yatra, which resulted in the deaths of three devotees in a stampede near the Shree Gundicha Temple in Puri.
Bahuda Yatra, scheduled for Saturday, marks the return journey of the deities to their original abode after the nine-day annual sojourn that began with Rath Yatra June 27.
Terming the developments surrounding the festival “deeply distressing,” the BJD said the administrative inquiry announced by the state’s BJP government was grossly inadequate.
“We therefore humbly urge a judicial inquiry, monitored by a sitting judge of the Orissa High Court, to ensure full accountability and justice for the victims,” the BJD said in a memorandum.
A BJD delegation led by its senior vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra and comprising MPs, MLAs and other senior leaders met Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati at Raj Bhavan and apprised him of the concerns of the people and the party.
The Opposition party also urged the governor to personally intervene and oversee the remaining events of the Rath Yatra to prevent any further mismanagement.
Noting that the Rath Yatra is not merely a religious event for the people of the state, the BJD said that it is the cultural soul of Odisha.
“The pain, grief, and outrage caused by the events of this year are profoundly felt across communities. We place our trust in your wisdom and constitutional authority to take immediate and appropriate action in the larger interest of the people and the devotees of Lord Jagannath across the globe,” the BJD said.
“The manner in which the BJP government conducted the Rath Yatra hurt the sentiments of the people. Due to the callous and casual attitude of the state government, more than 750 devotees were injured, and three people lost their lives the following day due to the stampede near Shree Gundicha Temple,” Mishra told reporters.
The Opposition party also told the governor that several eminent senior journalists were physically assaulted by police personnel and restrained from covering the events.
Servitors, who were performing rituals, were also pulled down from the chariots, the BJD alleged.
The BJD blamed the tragedy partly on the indiscriminate issuance of over 10,000 cordon passes by the ruling BJP, allegedly distributed to party workers and affiliates, far exceeding safe operational limits and contributing to overcrowding.
Stating that despite multiple preparatory meetings at the chief minister’s level held for smooth management and a hassle-free Rath Yatra this year, the result was otherwise.
The party also informed the governor that the state government failed to reconstitute the Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee, the highest decision-making and policy-making body of the shrine.
The BJD also raised concerns over unresolved issues from Rath Yatra 2024, including the fall of Lord Balabhadra’s idol from the Taladhwaja chariot, an incident that triggered widespread outrage.
Although a three-member committee was formed to investigate the matter, its report has not been made public even after a year, the party claimed.
PTI
