Cuttack: Due to the lukewarm response of the people to the Judicial Commission for Puri Shree Jagannath Temple reforms, the panel Monday extended the deadline of receiving affidavits from public by a month.
The Commission, set up in July this year following the ‘Niladri Bije’ fiasco, had fixed November 4 as the last date for receipt of affidavits.
‘‘Since the public response has not been encouraging, it has been decided to extend the deadline to December 4,’’ said Justice (Retd) B P Das, who is heading the one-man panel.
It was further learnt that the Commission has also sought certain documents pertaining to the rituals of the temple and documents related to encroachment of the temple’s land from Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) and the Puri district collector.
Security of the temple, safety of the devotees, timely conduct of the temple rituals and welfare of the Lord’s servitors (temple workers) are some of the many aspects in which the Commission has been requested by the state to suggest reforms measures.
Sources said only 15 affidavits have been received till last week through the drop boxes. Besides, less than 10 affidavits from the public reached the commission’s office through post. Perhaps many people do not know that we are seeking public feedback. We have requested the information and public relations department to conduct publicity exercises,’’ said commission secretary Bibhu Prasanna Parija.
The government appointed the judicial commission in July after the temple witnessed a series of controversies over mismanagement of rituals by unruly servitors.
The commission was set up four days after some servitors defied the Orissa High Court ban and took their families onto the chariots, disrupting July 17 Niladri Bije ritual (final leg of Rath Yatra) and triggering public outrage. The servitors, who frequently hogged headlines for their unseemly conduct, allegedly heckled Puri collector Aravind Agarwal and assaulted journalists when they questioned the presence of their kin on chariots.
Press Trust of India