The construction work under the Srimandir Heritage Corridor project is going on as per the wish of the Lord Jagannath and no agency can stop it, said Puri MP Pinaki Mishra on Saturday.
“The construction work is going on round the clock. It is also the wish of the Lord Jagannath that the project work should finish at the earliest,” stated the Parliamentarian.
None in the world can stop the ongoing construction work as the Lord wishes so, said Mishra adding that, the court will decide if the construction work is carried out as per the law or not.
Expressing concern over the matter, Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati said, “There is no political party in Odisha to take on the Biju Janata Dal (BJD). While the Congress is not in the scene, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is with the BJD.”
Earlier, the Puri sheer had said, "It has been quite natural of the government to convert a 'tapobhumi' into 'bhogbhumi'."
RTI activist, Dillip Baral said, “The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had on February 11 issued a letter, directing the closure of the construction work. In spite of this, the work is still going on round the clock. It’s time the ASI should take legal action to stop the work.”
In his reaction, senior advocate Manas Mahapatra said, “By now, the ASI must have taken legal action and stopped the construction work by serving a show-cause notice. I am yet to understand why the ASI is dragging its feet.”
Notably, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi on Friday came down heavily on the Puri MP saying how he didn’t know it that the construction work is being carried out violating the law.
Targeting the Biju Janata Dal government, she had said, “They are well aware of the fact that the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958 have been violated. Hence, now they are left with no option but to manage the scene by covering up the mistakes.”
It is pertinent to mention here that senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy, who met the Puri sheer in the holy town on Friday, said he was well aware of the ongoing controversy surrounding the project and would discuss with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in this regard.