Odisha Governor’s pitch for foreigners’ entry into Jagannath Temple touches off a row

“If a foreigner can meet Gajapati, servitors and Jagatguru Shankaracharya, he/she should also be allowed to meet eyes with the Chakanayana (name of Lord Jagannath). It’s my personal opinion irrespective of whether people will appreciate it or not,” said Lal, whose gubernatorial tenure will be completed in May.

Located in the eastern part of the country, Jagannath Temple is one of the four dhams (char dhams), where the entry of non-Hindus is barred. A sign board at the temple’s Lion Gate clearly states: “Only Hindus are allowed.”

The servitors rejected the Governor’s suggestion of allowing foreign nationals into the temple, saying Lord Jagannath along with his siblings — Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra — come to Bada Danda (Grand Road) to be in the midst of the devotees during the annual Rath Yatra (car festival). Thousands of foreign nationals also throng the holy town of Puri during the Rath Yatra (in June-July) to have a glimpse of the Lord.

Madhaba Chandra Pujapanda, a member of the temple managing committee, said the Governor might have made his personal observation out of devotion for the Lord but there should not be any deviation in the tradition. “The Governor said if foreign nationals are meeting Gajapati, servitors and Shankaracharya, why can’t they have darshan of Lord. Lord Jagannath cannot be compared with Gajapati, servitors and Shankaracharya,” he said.

The ruling BJD leaders have refrained from making any comments on the Governor’s proposal, citing the “sensitivities” of the matter.

BJP leader Bijoy Mohapatra endorsed servitors’ views on the matter, while the party’s Leader of Opposition, Jayanarayan Mishra, said Mukti Mandap, a council of pandits (Brahmin scholars) at the temple, should take a call on it.

Congress veteran Suresh Routray said he cannot support the Governor’s proposal. “We should respect all religions but there should not be interference in the affairs of any religion,” he said.

The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee’s president Sarat Pattanayak also said the temple’s tradition should not be broken. “Such a suggestion coming from any quarters should be taken up for discussion at a proper forum and with temple servitors, Shankaracharya and Puri Gajapati,” he said.

Prof Prafulla Rath, an expert in Jagannath culture, also opposed the Governor’s suggestion, saying there is no need for allowing foreign nationals into the temple. “Though the Governor is the head of the state, he is not the head of our religion. The Governor should clarify his stand as to why he has made such a statement. Foreign nationals can have darshan of Lord Jagannath during Rath Yatra and Snana Purnima,” he said.

Though the Puri royal scion and the Shankaracharya have not commented on the Governor’s proposal so far, Raj Bhavan sources said the Governor stands by his statement.

In the past, there have been several rows over the issue of entry of non-Hindus into Jagannath Temple. In 1984, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was not allowed by priests to enter the temple on the ground that she had married a non-Hindu. Indira was then forced to have darshan from the Raghunandan Library near the temple. In 2006, a Swiss citizen Elizabeth Jigler, who had donated Rs 1.78 crore to the temple, was also denied entry as she was a Christian.

In 2011, a proposal by then advisor to Chief Minister and BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik, Pyari Mohan Mohapatra, supporting the entry of non-Hindus into Jagannath Temple in order to promote tourism in Odisha sparked a major controversy.