The Freethough Party of India (FPI) on Friday said the State Government is now in a state of utter confusion as it is, in one hand, opening Model English Medium Schools to upgrade rural children’s standard and, on the other hand, kowtowing servitors of the Shree Jagananth Temple for up-keeping religion-related blind beliefs in people.
“The Government has virtually abdicated its authority to govern and administer the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration Act as per law. To keep the Daitapatis in good humour it is bribing them to the tune of Rs 5 crore on one pretext or the other. On the other hand, it is opening Model Schools to upgrade standards of boys and girls in rural areas. These attitudes are confusing,” alleged party general secretary B Ramchandra CST Voltaire.
Commenting on the Baristha Nagarika Tirtha Yatra Yojana, he slammed to Government to waste public money in encouraging religious pilgrimages of senior citizens.
“What is more worrying is that the State Government is wasting huge public money in giving full page advertisements in different newspapers for making people know about the pilgrimage scheme. This money should be spent to provide basic amenities to the tribals, whose children are dying due to malnutrition,” said Voltaire.
He blamed all the three major political parties, BJD, BJP and Congress, for not taking any step to free people bondage of blind belief.
“Both the Union Government and State Governments are constitutionally bound to see that citizens given the right opportunity to develop their fundamental duty relating to “develop scientific temper, spirit of inquiry, humanism and reform. But no steps have been taken in this regard,” rued Voltaire.
He opined that there is absolutely no need for constituting the Justice BP Das Commission to tell the Government what it should do. The Government, instead, should act according to the Benthamite Doctrine of utilitarianism. Whatever is useful should remain, whatever is harmful, whatever is unethical, whatever is against truth and human dignity should go,” he said. People of Odisha should be made free from all kinds of blind beliefs, he said.