Mahant of Radhaballav Mutt raises demarcation dispute
PURI: Disputing the district administration’s measurement, Mahant of Radhaballav Mutt Sricharan Das on Wednesday demanded fresh demarcation of the religious structure for the ongoing demolition drive.
The Mahant said the administration on Wednesday went beyond the stipulated radius of 75 metre to cover more parts of the Mutt for demolition. “Earlier, we had measured manually by using a tape and marked the 75 metre boundary of Mutt. Surprisingly, the recent marking by the administration is 2.5 metre more than the 75 metre mark,” he alleged.
Though a small portion of the Mutt comes under the 75-metre radius, the administration is claiming that the centuries old building is unsafe except its temple and other relics. “The Mutt building was unsafe until 2012. But we renovated it and even the civil engineers certified it to be safe. Besides, the old temple of the Mutt is being reconstructed. Unfortunately, the district Collector refused to accept our arguments,” Das said.
“I have no objection if the portion of the Mutt coming under the 75-metre limit is demolished. But there should be no demolition beyond the mark and the Mutt should be allowed to retain the rest of the building,” he added.
A branch of SBI operates from the first floor of the Mutt building while Boyanika and a number of commercial shops do business on the ground floor. Sub-Collector Bhabataran Sahu dismissed the Mahant’s allegation and said the demarcation was carried out by Revenue staff and the 75 metre mark was determined through digital mapping which is error-free. The marking of the yellow circle along the 75 metre mark is underway amid tight security and in presence of Magistrates, he added.
Radhaballav is one of the oldest mutts in Puri. It was founded by Nimbarkacharya in 1168 AD during the reign of king Chodagang Dev. Nimbarkacharya had found the presence of Radha in Lord Jagannath. He conceptualised and propagated Radha Krishna bhakti cult. Das, who is the 83rd Mahant of the Mutt, said famous poet Jaydev penned Gita Gobinda during his months of stay in the Mutt.
Radhaballav Mutt plays an important role in observance of various ‘nitees’ of the Trinity. It renders religious service to Lord Jagannath like ‘Aalat Chamara Seva’ and offering of ‘Panti bhog’ during Rath and Bahuda Yatras.