Puri: It has been alleged that some Paika servitors have transferred ownership of land belonging to Lord Jagannath in this town to their names and are selling it off making huge profits in return.
The matter has been brought to the knowledge of Puri District Collector Samarth Verma and Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Chief Administrator Krishan Kumar by local residents.
Since decades, Paika servitors of Jagannath Temple have been enjoying benefits of land belonging to Lord Jagannath by cultivating crops. These lands have been under their supervision for a lengthy period.
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Taking advantage of this situation, some members of Paika families have converted these properties to their names and are now selling those off, servitor Chandrasekhar Guru alleged Friday.
According to a source, the landed properties of Lord Jagannath under Samanga mouza are being acquired to facilitate the ongoing expansion and development work of River Musa in the district.
The landed properties belong to Lord Jagannath as per a Settlement carried out during 1927-28. Hence, the compensation should be given to the deity, sources said. Valuation of the properties are said to be over Rs 7 crore as per present market price.
Sources said that during the process to acquire the land, it came to the notice of the authorities that the ownerships of some of the properties have been transferred to some Paika servitor families in 2014 and 2015. Some cases pertaining to the lands are presently pending at Puri Civil Judge Court (Junior Division) and the Court of Commissioner (Land Consolidation). However, Lord Jagannath has not been made a party in the cases. “I demand immediate correction in the land records”, Guru said.
On being contacted, Administrator (Development) of the temple, Ajay Kumar Jena said, “We have received allegations that land belonging to Lord Jagannath has been sold off by changing the ownership. We are looking into the matter.”
Jena added, “The allegations are being investigated and actions will be taken accordingly against the tehsildar concerned, if he is at fault. We are verifying land records to ascertain when the ownerships were changed.”
PNN