Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Puri, Jul 27:

Bhimsen Palankadhari, servitor of Puri Sri Jagannath Temple, filed anticipatory bail plea in the Orissa High Court in a bid to avoid his arrest in connection with the disturbance created by sevayats during Niladri Bije ritual of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, reports said today.

sevayats

The Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) court here has already issued non-bailable warrants (NBWs) against Palankadhari and five other absconding servitors accused of heckling the Puri District Collector during the Niladri Bije rituals on July 17.

Notably, three servitors– Damodar Mahasuara, Jayakrushna Mahasuara and Harinarayan Khuntia– had filed anticipatory bail pleas in the Orissa High Court on Friday.

Puri Collector Arvind Agarwal had on July 18 forwarded two complaints to the district SP Sarthak Sarangi naming six sevayats for their alleged role in creating disturbance during the conduct of Niladri Bije rituals.

The Collector while naming sevayats Damodar Mahasuara, Ipsit Pratihari, Saina Khuntia, Jayakrushna Mahasuara, Bhimsen Palankadhari and Rabi Das in his complaints, had accused them of misbehavior, hurling of abuses and death threat.

It may be recalled that some sevayats had an altercation with the collector during the Niladri Bije ritual when he confronted them after the servitors and their kin alighted from the Taladhwaja chariot, in clear violation of High Court and Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) orders. The incident had led to the delay in the conduct of rituals and pahandi of Lord Sudarshan.