Jajpur: The idols of Goddess Durga were immersed everywhere after the four-day Dussehra carnival concluded on October 14. However, an exception was seen in Rambag Bazar under Jajpur police station in the district, where Devi Durga idol remained in the puja pandal without being immersed due to a land dispute between the puja committee and the landowner.
The landowner, Kedar Narayan Rout, had gathered sand in front of the puja pandal for constructing his house, prompting the Puja Committee to approach the police and local administration. Consequently, the administration imposed Section 163 BNSS on the location. Due to the prohibitory orders, the idol cannot be taken out of the pandal for immersion.
Kedar Narayan stated that he had never opposed the immersion of the Durga idol. “I had gathered sand on my land two months ago for constructing my house. The Durga Puja committee filed a case, following which the local administration imposed Section 163 BNSS. As a result, my construction work was halted midway. I cannot remove the sand due to the prohibitory orders. The committee has also filed a case against me, so I am awaiting the court’s order”.
On the other hand, Akshya Kumar Das, a senior member of the Puja Committee, said, “The landowner gathered sand for his construction work, blocking the pandal’s door. We requested him to remove the sand, but he didn’t comply. We performed the puja despite the challenging conditions. However, we cannot take the idol out of the puja room for immersion due to the sand heap. We brought this matter to the police and local administration’s attention, resulting in the imposition of Section 163 BNSS. Unfortunately, we failed to immerse the idol and prayed to the goddess seeking forgiveness for this adversity.”
