Oppn slams govt over mismanaging festivals

Bhubaneswar: The Opposition BJD and Congress on Thursday accused the BJP government of mismanaging major festivals in Lord Jagannath temple in Puri and Shri Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar.

A servitor fell from a height of 20 feet while carrying the Mahadeepa (burning lamp) to the top of the 11th-century Lingaraj temple as part of the Maha Shivaratri rituals on Wednesday. Three persons were injured in the incident.

In July last year, at least nine servitors of Puri Jagannath temple were injured when the idol of Lord Balabhadra fell on them while it was being taken out from the chariot to a temple as part of the Rath Yatra festival.

“The mishap at Lingaraj temple during the lifting of the Mahadeepa is condemnable.

The State government has failed yet again, having already faltered during the Rath Yatra in Puri. There is still no report on how Lord Balabhadra’s idol fell during the procession,” BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty told reporters here.

He charged the State administration with remaining busy with VIPs only, rather than ensuring that festivals are conducted without mishaps. .

Bhubaneswar Mayor and BJD leader Sulochana Das said the servitor’s hand slipped while climbing due to oil on the stone wall of the Lingaraj temple.

Earlier, sand used to be sprinkled on the stone to protect servitors from slipping due to oil, she said.

Newly appointed State Congress president Bhakta Charan Das alleged the BJP government has twice hurt the religious sentiments of the people.

He asked the State government to issue a White Paper on both the incidents that hurt the sentiments of lakhs of devotees in the State and outside.

Das, who visited the injured servitor at a hospital, claimed that the people were not satisfied with the government’s management of the affairs in this regard.

The injured servitor, identified as Jogendra Samartha, was admitted to Capital Hospital and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi visited him there on Wednesday night.

Responding to the allegations, senior BJP MLA Babu Singh said the Opposition leaders should refrain from indulging in politicising the matter.

He said the Bhubaneswar Mayor, who belongs to the BJD, is also part of the administration and she was present in the temple all day during the Shivaratri festival, but did not rectify had there been any error.

The injured servitor’s son Ashwini Samartha said there was no sand on the stone in the climbing area of the temple for which his father slipped and fell.

The ghee drops falling from the burning torch (Mahadeepa) made the stone slippery, he told reporters.

He said his father has been taking the Mahadeepa to the temple top for the last 25 years and he is an expert in climbing the temple.