Poster protest: Servitor-admin impasse continues before Rath Yatra coordination meet

Puri: Though the second co-ordination committee meeting for the upcoming Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath is scheduled tomorrow, the continuing impasse following last year’s Niladri Bije fiasco and posters put up today urging servitors to boycott the meeting have thrown questions over smooth conduct of the annual sojourn of the Trinity.

The Sevayat Sammilani had decided that the servitors should boycott all meetings convened by the administration till the administration withdraws the suspension orders following the Niladri Bije ruckus.

“As the meeting has been convened by the collector, we have urged all the servitors to boycott the meet,” said secretary of Sevayat Sammilani, Kashinath Khuntia.

A similar boycott call was given ahead of the first co-ordination committee meeting with posters following which only a handful of servitors had attended the meeting. If a similar trend continues in the second meeting, many believe that it would raise a lot concerns over the timely and smooth conduct of the Rath Yatra.

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While Puri collector declined to comment on the matter, assistant secretary of Daitapati Nijog Binayak Dasmohapatra said if the district administration, the chief administrator of the temple and the RDC do not act beforehand to resolve the issues, problems are bound to occur.

“The suspension should be withdrawn and the matter resolved through mutual discussions,” said president of the Khuntia Nijog, Hajuri Krushnachandra Khuntia.