Misbehaviour with Swedish woman tourist: Lingaraj servitor awarded 18-month jail term 

A court in Bhubaneswar convicted a servitor of the Lingaraj Temple for misbehaving with a woman tourist from Sweden. The conviction was made within 28 days of the incident. 

The JMFC court pronounced its verdict and sentenced accused Kundu Mohapatra to a jail term of 18 months. Police had produced a charge-sheet against him in four days. 

Mohapatra had allegedly misbehaved with the Swedish tourist when she was visiting the temple on February 19, 2024.

The accused took her to show the presiding deities and allegedly misbehaved with her. The woman tourist had filed a complaint in this regard. She was counselled and her statement was recorded before a magistrate.

Subsequently, Lingaraj Police registered a case and detained the servitor after ascertaining his identity. 

Police arrested the accused on February 21 under Sections 354 and 354 (a) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). 

It is learned that the servitor was arrested for a similar offence in the past.