Bhubaneswar: Even as police forwarded J Mahapatra, who was arrested for allegedly vandalising the kitchen of Jagannath temple in Puri, to court on Wednesday, his parents said they could not believe that their son could indulge in such acts.
Speaking to media persons, his father said his son is a religious and God fearing person. “He used to frequently visit Jagannath temple in Puri and Ranpur. Whenever he went to the temple in Puri, he would spend several hours there. How can he commit such acts inside the temple,” he wondered.
“Lord Jagannath will punish my son, if he has done something wrong or disrespected God. I know my son and has unflinching faith in the Lord’s justice,” Mahapatra’s father said.
Stating that her son was innocent, Mahapatra’s mother said he loved to do religious services at home and village temple. How can the boy, who worships God, can damage His property, she asked.
Besides being a religious person, the accused is a stickler for cleanliness. He used to clean the premises of village temple, said the villagers. He also reprimanded the devotees who were found littering in the temple, they added.
Earlier in the day, Puri SP Kanwar Vishal Singh told the media that 30-year-old Mahapatra was arrested from his village on Puri-Khurda border on Tuesday night. He has confessed that while he had gone to temple, he felt uneasy and ransacked around 40 chulhas in the Rosaghar (kitchen) of the temple, the SP added.
Stating that the motive behind his act is yet to be ascertained, Singh said his statement is currently vague and they would seek his remained for further interrogation.
