PURI, INDIA, April 10, 2019 (Odisha Bytes): In the wake of Supreme Court’s proposal to hand over the management of the Jagannath temple to the Shankaracharya of the Gobardhan Peeth in its recent hearing, the latter is of the view that from the spiritual and religious perspective, the management of the temple should remain in his charge. “There will be no disparity if the management adheres to the ethics and rituals specified under the record of rights and Shree Jagannath Temple Act,” Shankaracharya of Gobardhan Peeth, Swamy Nischalalanda Saraswati, told the media here on Wednesday.
Taking a dig at the state government, the seer said that the senior bureaucrats, appointed as the chief administrators of the Shri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) have tarnished the rich and pristine tradition of the temple with mindless governance. “No one should forget that the Adi Shankaracharya had reinstalled the statue of Lord Jagannath in the Srimandir 2503 years ago,” he pointed out. Notably, the Supreme Court while hearing a PIL on mismanagement and exploitation of devotees in Jagannath temple in Puri on April 8 had questioned the role of the government authorities in taking over the administration of religious places. The apex court had observed that the task should be entrusted to devotees as it expressed concern over the failure of various state governments in managing temple affairs. Appearing on behalf of the Puri Shankaracharya, advocate Suchit Mohanty had told the bench that the spiritual guru had filed an application in the case to assist the court in deciding the issue.