Foreign Woman Tourist Enters Puri Jagannath Temple; Know What Happened Next

Puri: The entry of a foreign national into Jagannath temple in Odisha’s Puri created a flutter on Sunday.

There is restrictions on the entry of foreigners into the 12th-century shrine in the pilgrim town, where only Hindus are allowed to offer prayers to the sibling deities in the sanctum sanctorum. A sign at the Lion’s Gate (main entrance) of the temple clearly states: “Only Hindus are allowed.”

According to reports, some servitors raised an alarm on seeing the woman tourist near Jagamohan on the temple complex last afternoon. She, however, fled and could not be traced later. A short video of her coming out of the temple also went viral on social media.

The servitors blamed security personnel on duty at the entrance for the alleged negligence. “We are shocked that neither the police nor temple authorities could find her even though some of our colleagues had spotted her in the temple,” a servitor told TOI, adding that they should remain more alert to prevent such violation of the temple tradition.

It is being said that the foreigner wore a salwar kameez and had her face covered. Police are verifying the CCTV footage from the temple to ascertain her identity. Though not a criminal act under the law, the temple administration has the authority to impose a certain fine on such offenders.

This incident came a year after the then Governor Ganeshi Lal sparked a debate in the state with his statement in favour of the entry of foreigners into Jagannath temple. The servitors had then opposed the suggestion, stating that the Lord Himself comes out of His abode during Rath Yatra to give darshan to all His devotees.

In 2018, the Supreme Court had also urged the Jagannath temple administration to consider allowing non-Hindus to enter the temple, saying that Hinduism doesn’t eliminate any other faith and is the eternal faith, wisdom and inspiration of centuries.