BARIPADA: The voices of protest against wrongful transfer of Haribaldev Jew temple land in name of individuals and government organisations are growing louder with the Jagannath Bahini, a socio-cultural outfit of Baripada, demanding return of the land from illegal occupancy.
Submitting a memorandum to Collector Vineet Bhardwaj on Tuesday, members of the outfit sought setting up of an administrative office and officer to look into irregularities. President of the outfit Umakanta Rout said due to dearth of funds in Endowments department, the daily rituals of the deities are not performed properly. Attributing funds crunch to mismanagement of temple land, he said,
“The Maharajas of the then princely state of Mayurbhanj gave away thousands of acres of land to the temple. But later, the land were recorded in the name of individuals leading to financial crisis.” The outfit demanded to immediately get the temple land back and declare names of persons who illegally occupied the temple land.