Puri Jagannath servitor issued notice for 'misusing' sacred wood Bengal’s Digha Temple

A senior servitor of the Puri Jagannath Temple, Ramakrushna Dasmohapatra, has landed in controversy after being accused of misusing sacred wood from the 12th-century shrine to craft idols for a newly constructed Jagannath temple in Digha, West Bengal. The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has issued him a show-cause notice, sparking a wave of concern among devotees and religious authorities alike.

The notice, served on May 4, accuses Dasmohapatra — who also serves as secretary of the ‘Daitapati Nijog’ (a traditional group of Lord Jagannath’s servitors) — of making contradictory statements regarding the use of sacred wood. According to SJTA, these inconsistencies have "created confusion in the minds of countless devotees" and undermined the temple’s sanctity.

Dasmohapatra, along with 55 other servitors from Puri, had attended the consecration of the Digha temple on April 30 in the presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. It was later alleged that the idols installed at the Digha shrine — of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra — were crafted from sacred neem wood stored in the Puri temple’s 'Daru Gruha' (wood storehouse), which is only to be used for repair and rituals within the Puri temple as per tradition.

The SJTA’s concern escalated after Dasmohapatra appeared on a Bengali news channel admitting to using the sacred Puri wood for the idols. However, in a later statement to Odia media, he contradicted himself, claiming the idols were made from another neem tree. This flip-flop has not only damaged his credibility but has also hurt the sentiments of devotees who consider the wood immensely sacred.

According to temple tradition, the sacred neem wood used in the ‘Nabakalebara’ ceremony is ritually collected during the ‘Banajoga’ and preserved for future repairs. Unauthorized use of this wood is considered a serious breach of religious conduct.

The Law Minister of Odisha, Prithiviraj Harichandan, has already directed SJTA to investigate the matter thoroughly. The chief administrator of SJTA, Arabinda Padhee, summoned Dasmohapatra and questioned him for over 90 minutes regarding the origin of the wood and whether temple protocols were violated.

Dasmohapatra has been asked to respond within seven days or face disciplinary action under the Sri Jagannath Temple Act, 1955. The controversy also fuels existing tension over the West Bengal government’s branding of the Digha temple as ‘Jagannath Dham’, a move that many devotees in Odisha perceive as cultural overreach.