CM Orders Judicial Probe Into Missing Key Of Ratna Bhandara

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday ordered a judicial probe into the missing of the key of the Ratna Bhandara inside the Jagannath temple in Puri.

The chief minister issued the directive after a meeting with the Law minister Pratap Jena and chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Pradip Jena at the State Secretariat here.

As per the order, a retired judge of the Orissa High Court will probe into the incident and submit a report to the state government within three months.

The probe will focus on the circumstances in which the Ratna Bhandara key has gone missing and why it is not found.

Keeping the ensuing Rath Yatra scheduled on July 14 in view, it is expected that the probe report would be submitted to the state government in August.

The missing of the Ratna Bhandara key had triggered political reactions as the state BJP on Sunday had sought a clarification from chief minister Naveen Patnaik on this issue.

Besides, Shankaracharya of Gobardhan Peeth in Puri Swami Nischalananda Saraswati had criticized the state government for its gross apathy on this issue and demanded a probe into the incident.