Bhubaneswar: The row over the missing keys of the Puri Srimandir’s Ratna Bhandar (treasury) took a new turn with the BJP filing an FIR with the Singhadwar police in Puri Wednesday.
This, even after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik ordered a judicial probe into the matter, to be led by a retired judge of the high court. Seeking action against the guilty, the state BJP said in the FIR that the disappearance of the keys has hurt the sentiments of crores of Jagannath devotees.
“While Lord Jagannath is the Lord of the Universe, His Ratna Bhandar (treasure)’s precious keys are missing. It implies that everything is unsafe. There was a possibility of stealing of costly ornaments stored at the treasury. “Lord Jagannath is unsafe and his treasure trove is also unsafe,” the party alleged.
The BJP leaders said, “The state government’s judicial inquiry order and seeking of the report in three months is an unjust step. Hence, the BJP on behalf of the public decided to lodge an FIR against the state government and the officials responsible for the missing keys from today across Odisha. We demand a speedy investigation and punishment to the guilty.
Notably, Justice Raghubir Das has been appointed as the inquiry commissioner who would go into the circumstances leading to the disappearance of the Ratna Bhandar keys.
PNN