BHUBANESWAR: The ruling BJD on Friday welcomed the rejection of public interest litigations (PILs) against construction activities around the Shri Jagannath Temple and said that the Lord has spoken through the apex court.
Soon after the rejection of the PILs, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik took to Twitter and said that not a leaf moves without his will. The tweet had a photograph of the renovations around the Jagannath temple. "Tuma Iccha Bina Patra Te Haleni Ahe Jagannath Jay Jagannath (Not even a leaf moves without your will)," he tweeted.
Though the Chief Minister did not mention anything about the Srimandir Parikrama project in the tweet, it was obvious that he was only referring to the rejection of the PILs.
Puri MP Pinaki Mishra, who faced Opposition criticism for his statements on the project, said that the Chief Minister stands vindicated in his earnest efforts to create world class infrastructure to make Puri a world heritage city.
"The Lord has spoken through the voice of the Hon’ble Apex Court. Naveen babu stands vindicated in his earnest attempt to create world class infrastructure to make Puri a World Heritage Site," he said.
Stating that the Chief Minister has always tried to keep the project apolitical by taking all parties along in every step and inviting them all to the foundation stone laying ceremony, he appealed all to stop impending the project work for personal and political gains.
"History will judge us in this hour of reckoning if this decisive legal verdict of the final court is not taken in the right spirit of Odia glory for the sake of Lord Jagannath and the people of Puri" he added.
Meanwhile, the Opposition BJP and Congress have also welcomed the rejection of the PILs and said that there should not be politicisation of the construction work any more. Stating that BJP has never opposed the Srimandir Parikrama project, BJP MLA from Puri Jayant Sarangi said that his party leaders always wanted work to be done in conformity with the existing Acts and rules.
Stating that the Supreme Court verdict would now lead to early completion of the project, Sarangi said that any further delay would have been dangerous for the temple and people of Puri. Besides, with digging all around, the project would have been complete one day or the other, he added.
President of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Sarat Pattanayak also welcomed the stand of the Supreme Court. Now that the Supreme Court has rejected the PILs, everybody should stop politics in the name of Lord Jagannath and let the construction work be completed, he added.