Even as there is a hue and cry over pictures of the Puri Jagannath Temple’s Jagmohan repair work going viral in the social media, the Justice BP Das Commission of Inquiry for Reforms in Shreemandir on Tuesday sought a report from the law Secretary, the Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) and the Puri district Collector and SP.
The commission directed the authorities to submit a detailed report in connection with the incidence within 10 days.
Moreover, the commission said the recommendations made for bolstering security at the temple are not being followed while the persons who have posted such pictures on social media should be identified and arrested if required.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Chief Administrator Pradeep Jena informed that one Sadanand Sharma, who was earlier associated with the temple conservation project, posted the pictures in social media.
“Sharma has apologised to all the devotees of the temple for posting the pictures on Facebook,” informed Jena.
Sources said Sharma in a message claimed that he was aware of the sensitivity of the conservation matter and all the pictures have been removed from his Facebook page.
Notably, several photographs of the Jagamohan and the sanctum sanctorum of the temple doing the rounds on social media has triggered deep resentment among devotees and raised question marks over the security measures at the famous shrine, which is known to be on the radar of anti-national and Jehadi outfits.
Sadanand Sharma had uploaded these photos on Facebook on September 25, 2016, which have gone viral on the social networking site.
According to the Facebook, Sharma is a scientist at the Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research, Dhanbad.
According to the Facebook post, the photos were taken at the time of the last year’s Rath Yatra during a “scientific investigation” in the temple to sort out the problems of ventilation and humidity inside the Jagamohan and the sanctum sanctorum. It is said that during the scientific investigation, Sharma was part of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) team.
Expressing resentment over such an unprecedented happening, servitors of the temple have demanded a high-level probe into the matter.
Worth mentioning, carrying of cameras and video recording devices inside the temple is prohibited, but ASI personnel are allowed to take cameras but are not supposed to make the contents public.
Meanwhile, law Minister Pratap Jena said he doesn’t have knowledge of the incidence, but an inquiry would be held.