Bandh called by Puri lawyers successful

Odisha Channel Bureau Puri, June 24: The 12-hour-long Puri bandh called by the lawyers in protest against the mismanagement in the Brahma Parivartan ritual was total today.The residents spontaneously observed the bandh while traders did not open their establishments.The train and bus services were hampered and hundreds of visitors were stranded at the main bus stand and railway station.All schools and colleges were closed except the exam centres.All government offices and courts remained closed as the lawyers appealed them to close.Earlier, lawyers organised street corner meetings at various busy places of the city and described how a handful of Daitapatis were creating trouble and blamed the temple chief administrator for the deviation in the temple tradition.Many cultural and religious bodies including political parties such as Congress and BJP supported the bandh.This apart, many Bar Associations of the State, including the High Court Bar Association, supported the bandh and stopped court work during the day.A 20-member fact finding team from the High Court Bar Association arrived in Puri and interacted with office-bearers of the Puri Bar Association to ascertain the facts.They demanded that the temple chief administrator should be removed as he is responsible for the entire mishap and a sitting high court judge should investigate into the mismanagement of the Brahma Parivartan rituals.They said the present temple act is inadequate to punish the guilty of this magnitude serious crime against the entire Hindu faith.Since it is a criminal offence the guilty should be tried under the IPC.High Court Bar Association president Ashok Mahapatra and secretary Bijay Kumar Ragad said we are with the lawyers of Puri and would fight till a logical conclusion to this case is achieved.Odisha BandhMeanwhile, the Congress party announced to observe a statewide bandh on June 26 (Friday) demanding a judicial probe into the Brahma Parivartan fiasco.