Man in dhoti caught scaling Puri Jagannath temple

The Azamgarh resident was intercepted by temple police mid-climb and is now being interrogated.

Puri: A man was nabbed by security personnel while climbing the 12th-century Shree Jagannath Temple here on Friday, police said.

Superintendent of Police, Puri, Pinak Mishra, said that the man was identified as Manoj Singh, a resident of Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh. He entered the temple wearing a dhoti and attempted to climb the temple, the SP said.

The man was spotted climbing the temple by the Jagannath Temple Police (JTP) and taken to the Singhadwar Police station. The man is being interrogated and his motives are being ascertained, the SP said.

On August 16, a man from Jharkhand was also caught while trying to climb the Beharana dwara (exit gate) of the temple. The police, after inquiry, had maintained that the man was found to be mentally unstable. In another such incident, a man from Ganjam in Odisha had also attempted to climb the temple.

On July 9, at least four youths scaled the high Meghanada Pacheri (temple boundary wall) and entered the temple premises.

The SP said that something needs to be done to prevent such incidents, as people attempting to climb the temple are being reported frequently.

"We will suggest the temple administration to put signage at certain places in the temple premises to avoid the occurrence of such incidents," the SP said.