Temple priests nab two non-Hindus in Jagannath temple

Puri, Nov 7 (UNI) Vigilant temple servitors today detected two non- Hindu teen aged youths entering into the shrine and handed over them to the temple police.

The two youths were interrogated by the security officer about their motive to enter into the 12th century edifice, which had been prohibited for non-Hindu devotees.

Police said they were being questioned and effort was on to ascertain their identities and motives behind entering into the temple.

According to the temple security in-charge Gyanaranjan Mahapatra, some servitors suspecting over their religious bearings as they spotted non-Hindu lockets prevented them from entering the shrine.

When questioned by the servitors the duo fumbled and later admitted that they were non-Hindus and said out of curiosity they had entered the temple and maintained that they had no knowledge about the restrictions.

They identified themshelves as Md Wasim Asgar, son of Akhtar Hussain and Aftab Alam (18), son of Idrish Alam of Biramitrapur. The temple police contacted their counterpart in Biramitrapur and confirmed their identity.

According to Kasinath Khuntia, a senior servitor, since the bhog offering to the deities was over and there was no ritual in progress and duo were far away from the inner complex there was little effect on the rituals of the temple.

In another incident also, three Indonesian nationals, including two women, were stopped by the servitors after they came out from the sanctum sanctorum near the ''baisi pahach''. However, they were later allowed to leave the temple after it was found that they were Hindus and part of a 13-member delegation from Indonesia.

UNI