Devotee assaulted inside Srimandir

Bhubaneswar: The staff at the Jagannath temple in Puri assaulted a devotee and snatched his gold pendant Sunday after he refused to pay a ‘huge’ amount for offering prayers, police said. Chetan G Amolkar, a resident of Thane in Maharashtra, lodged a complaint with police in Singhadwar, alleging that the servitors manhandled him inside the temple premises. A case has been registered in this connection. “The pundits are getting a salary for their service. But they also demand a huge amount from the devotees in the name of ‘darshan’ of the deities,” Chetan said, adding, “It’s a devotee’s call how much he wants to pay, but they force us (to pay more). When we refuse to pay the money they demand, we face such situations.”