Ratna Bhandar Keys With Odisha Govt Since 1960: Former Temple Officer

Puri: Pradip Dash, who was replaced by his predecessor Biswajit Biswal as the administrator (rituals) on Monday, said that the keys of Ratna Bhandar had not been handed over to Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) since 1960.

“The state government took over the administration of the temple in 1960. Since then, it has not handed over the keys to SJTA. Since the keys were not available, the locks of the Ratna Bhandar may have been opened for enumeration of the ornaments of the Lords by the duplicate keys in 1978. The enumeration of the ornaments continued for 20 days. At that time, the Puri collector was the custodian of the Ratna Bhandar keys,” he told the media.

Dash also said he was appointed by the state government as the officer on special duty (OSD) during Nabakalebara in 2016 and then as the administrator (rituals) of the temple two months after the festival.

Talking about the gross irregularities in Brahma Parivartan of the Lords during Nabakelabara, Dash said the rituals were delayed. “This is not the first instance as there has been a delay in performing Brahma Parivartan rituals in the previous Nabakalebara of the Lords,” he pointed out.

Though Dash parried a question on the alleged fixing in the selection of Daru for the Lords, he, however, said since the these have been carved into idols and are being worshipped in the temple, there should not be any further discussion on this matter.

The former administrator also gave a clean chit to the sevayats of the temple. “About 95 per cent of the sevayats engaged in the rituals of the Lords are sincere in their duty,” he observed.