Puri: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has failed to take action against the 11 servitors who were found guilty in connection with the Ghata Paribartan fiasco of 2015.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee had deliberated on the probe report on Ghata Paribartan fiasco at a meeting September 27 last year. Soon after the meeting, SJTA chief administrator PK Mohapatra had announced that the shrine administration would take action against the guilty servitors within three months.
Mohapatra had revealed that the SJTA would initiate action against the guilty servitors as per Section 21 (b) of the Srimandir Act, 1954.
Accordingly, the temple administration had served notices on a Maharana (carpenter) servitor and 10 Daita servitors November 13, 2017.
The SJTA had also made it clear that it would take punitive action against the servitors if they fail to provide satisfactory replies on the Ghata Paribartan issue. It had also threatened to initiate criminal proceedings against the guilty people. According to sources, all the guilty servitors have submitted their replies to SJTA within the stipulated period. However, the shrine administration is yet to take any action on the issue.
“The SJTA itself declared that it would take action against the guilty within three months. But, it has remained silent after serving notices to 11 servitors. We are suspecting that some influential groups are putting pressure on the SJTA not to take further action in this regard,” said a social activist.
It is worth mentioning here that Ghata Paribartan ritual, arguably the most secret ritual of Nabakalebara festival, was scheduled to be performed at midnight of June 15, 2015. However, the ritual was performed during daytime June 16.
The delay in performing the ritual had created a hue and cry across the state. The state government as well as the SJTA had invited sharp criticisms from several quarters. Then SJTA chief administrator Suresh Chandra Mahapatra had probed the incident.
Mahapatra had recorded the statements of four Badagrahis (the caretakers of idols and chariots during Rath Yatra), Daita Niyog president and secretary, Bidyapati and Bishwabasu of Nabakalebara and 10 Bishwakarma (carpenter) servitors in connection with the fiasco. The SJTA had also suspended senior Daita servitor Kashinath Dasmahapatra and his son Jaykrushna Dasmahapatra as per preliminary probe report.
In the meantime, Mahapatra was shifted from the SJTA. However, he had submitted his probe report to the temple authorities August 5, 2017.
Soon the temple managing panel had constituted a three-member sub-committee to study the report and give their findings.