Gajapati submits affidavit to panel on Odisha’s Sri Mandir reforms

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Dec 20:

Puri king Gajapati Dibya Singh Deb today submitted his affidavit to Justice B P Das Commission of Inquiry to suggest reforms in Odisha’s Sri Mandir.

The Commission’s secretary received the affidavit from the Gajapati at his Bhubaneswar residence.

Puri Collector, SP and the Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) also submitted their affidavits to the Commission today, it being the last day for submission of affidavits.

Shankaracharya of Govardhan Peeth Jagadguru Swami Nischalananda Saraswati has also filed his affidavit with the Commission.

It may be mentioned here that the Commission had placed drop boxes at 32 places to receive affidavits.

Sources in the Commission claimed that while it had no information on how many such affidavits have been received in 18 of the 32 drop boxes but as of now the Commission has received 12,744 affidavits, 126 emails and 84 proposals in other formats.

However, sources were quick to add that details about the contents of the 18 drop boxes will be known tomorrow.

Notably, the Commission which had extended its deadline twice for receipt of affidavits in view of poor response it received, a whopping 10,344 affidavits collected from across the state by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) at its Cuttack office.

It may be recalled here that the state government had announced the formation of the one-man judicial commission in September after the issue of manhandling of Puri Collector Arvind Agarwal by servitors during the Niladri Bije rituals this year reached a tipping point.