New Delhi: Amicus curiae Ranjeet Kumar Tuesday submitted a detailed report in the Supreme Court containing various suggestions on improvement of the affairs, especially devotee darshan, hygiene and hereditary rights of servitors in Shri Jagannath Temple, Puri.
In a 22-page report, the amicus stated that he had met various stake holders of the temple during his two-day visit and observed that there was a scope of improvement in various affairs.
The amicus said a devotee can have darshan without having to push around if a systematic line is allowed to visitors in a manner that complete darshan can be had by every devotee.
“Despite a very large area in the main hall from where darshan can be had there is no regulation inside the hall once a devotee reaches there while there is some regulation outside,” the amicus said in his report.
He pleaded for implementation of the system adopted in Tirupati or Mata Vaishno Devi without hindering the nitis and rituals to be performed for the deities.
Kumar also raised the issue of hygiene in the temple Rasoghar. He stated that a lot of activities are being done on an open air small chabutara without a proper disposal of waste. There is no disposal mechanism for the waste or an effluent treatment plant in the temple.
To manage offering practice in the temple, the amicus sought placing of Hundis at every prominent place both within and outside and at all other smaller temples within the complex.
Kumar in his report has opposed abolition of hereditary appointment of servitors.
“It cannot be abolished because the servitors who belonged to different Nijogs have been recognized with reference to their right to perform rituals/ nitis of the deities since it is a practice which has been going on for time immemorial,” the amicus stated.
He also emphasized the need to improve livelihood of servitors without affecting their hereditary rights. Based on his discussion with various stakeholders, Kumar had mentioned about the difficulties faced by the servitors in terms of their earning.
A two-judge bench of the apex court comprising Justice AK Sikri and Justice S Abdul Nazeer has given four weeks to all the parties to file their responses, if any, on the report of the amicus curiae and listed the matter for hearing April 2.
Significantly, an advocate appearing for Puri Shankaracharya urged the court that he wanted to intervene in the matter as he is one of the stakeholders of the temple. The bench directed him to file an appropriate application to become an intervention in the matter.