Kolkata/Puri: West Bengal Leader of Opposition (LoP) Suvendu Adhikari has welcomed the Odisha government’s decision to probe the controversies, stemming from the recent inauguration of a Jagannath temple at Digha.
Speaking to the media, Adhikari said that sacred neem wood (Daru) was stolen from the 12th-century Jagannath Temple in Puri. “They stole the sacred Neem wood and brought them here. This was done on the instructions of Mamata Banerjee, TMC is a thief…,” he said.
Accusing the Bengal government of misleading devotees, the BJP leader called for action against Daitapati servitor Ramakrushna Das Mahapatra and ISKCON priest Radharaman Das, who he claimed insulted Jagannath culture. “The Daitapati servitor should be taken into custody,” he added.
Also Read: Police Complaint Against Puri Temple’s Daitapati Servitor For ‘Smuggling’ Nabakalebar Wood To Bengal
Odisha Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan has also welcomed Adhikari’s statement, backing Odisha’s stance and criticising Bengal government for misleading devotees. “The Bengal government will be officially notified over naming of Digha project as “Jagannath Dham”. Legal action will be taken if they fail to respond to it,” he added.
Earlier, Harichandan has asked the authorities of Puri Jagannath Temple to conduct an “internal inquiry” into “naming the newly built Digha temple as Jagannath Dham, participation of servitors from Puri in the consecration ceremony of the new temple, and using the surplus sacred neem wood of Nabakalebara rituals to craft the idols for the new shrine”.
The action was necessitated after Ramakrushna Dasmahapatra, secretary of Daitapati Nijog, told a TV channel that he had brought the idols made of Daru and installed them at the Digha Jagannath Temple.
Also Read: Any Comparison With Puri Jagannath Dham Unacceptable: Odisha Law Minister
Also Read: No Other Place Can Be Called ‘Jagannath Dham’, Says Puri MP Sambit Patra On Digha Temple Row
The naming of the Digha temple as Jagannath Dham by the Bengal government has also stirred a controversy. Puri is one of the Char Dham, the four places in India with high pilgrimage importance, as defined by Adi Shankaracharya.
Also Read: Puri King Promises Appropriate Action Amid Outrage Over Naming Digha Temple As Jagannath Dham
Also Read: ‘Jagannath Dham In Puri Not Digha’: Odisha Flags ‘Misleading’ Bengal Ad With Neelachakra
