The demonstration staged by servitors at Nilamadhab temple in Nayagarh district’s Kantilo has caused Lord Nilamadhab to go without food for the last two days.
They have been staging a sit-in protesting against the alleged misbehaviour of the servitors by police.
They alleged that Kantilo outpost officer Ramesh Chandra Jena has been threatening and misbehaving with the servitors. They demanded the transfer of OIC Jena.
Because of the servitors’ protest, all the rituals at the temple have also remained suspended for the past two days. As a result, the devotees visiting the shrine are returning without prasad.
As per sources, an incident that occurred inside the shrine around 20 days ago is the root cause of the present tussle between the servitors and police.
A woman from West Bengal had visited the shrine around 20 days ago. While on the temple premises, a miscreant misbehaved with her.
Taking the side of the visitor, the servitors lodged a complaint at Kantilo outpost. But the police showed no alacrity in taking action against the miscreant.
Upon this, the miffed servitors took the matter up with the Nayagarh district Collector, SP and the Endowment department. Yet, the police did not take any action against the youth. Instead, the OIC started misbehaving with the servitors.
As a last resort, the servitors had to suspend all the rituals and stage a sit-in demanding the transfer of the OIC. Meanwhile, the district administration tried to pacify the servitors but to no avail as they stuck to their demand for the OIC’s transfer.