Puri Sadar Tehsildar Prabir Kumar Khilar on Monday, while adjudicating an Odisha Estate Abolition (OEA) case of the Shree Jagannath Temple, settled 11. 143 acres Swargdwar cremation land in favour of the Shree Jagannath Temple with freehold status and rejected the claim of Gobardhan Peeth over the land.
The Tehsildar also settled another 4. 341 acres unsettled land which included a public road, sweeper passage and other public utility places infavour of the Government. In his judgement, the Tehsildar said the balance 10.156 acres land is illegally occupied by 238 persons. They would be served notices in this regard very soon, the Tehsildar said in his Monday order.
The Shree Jagannath temple managing body in 1990 had filed an OEA claim case in the local Tehsildar court claiming rights over 30.100 acres of land which as per 1899 Government land records stood recorded in favour of the Shree Jagannath Temple. later, it was allocated to the Gobardhan Peeth to render some religious service.
The case was rejected then by the Tahasildar. The temple had filed an appeal in the higher forum. Of late, after the Swardwar land scam came into public, the RDC had directed the Tehsildar to conduct a fresh hearing and dispose of the case.