We are custodians, not thieves: Mamata on charge of wood theft from Puri temple to make Digha idols

Suti (WB): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday rejected allegations that neem wood was stolen from the Puri Jagannath temple and used to make the idols for the one in Digha.

Her statement came a day after Odisha Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said that according to an interim investigation report, no sacred wood from the Puri temple was used to make the idols installed in Digha, as was alleged in various quarters.

The Bengal CM also challenged those who were making such allegations to prove that the neem wood was stolen from the 12th-century shrine in Puri.

The Digha temple project, backed by the West Bengal government, has been pitched as a major religious and tourism hub.

"They said I have stolen wood from Jagannath Temple. Why should I? We have plenty of neem trees in Bengal. Even at my residence, there are four neem trees. At Digha's Jagannath temple, 500 trees have been planted, and another 100 will be planted. We do not want anyone's alms," Banerjee said.

She was speaking at a public distribution government programme here in Murshidabad district.

"We are not beggars, not pickpockets. We are the custodians and not thieves. I constructed such a beautiful temple, which is one of the wonders in the world, and they are alleging that I have stolen neem wood. Prove it or else the people will give a befitting reply in the coming days," the CM said.

The alleged theft and use of sacred wood of the Puri temple in crafting idols of the shrine at Digha, inaugurated by Banerjee on April 30, sparked a huge controversy.

It was alleged that some Puri servitors used leftover ‘neem’ wood from the 2015 ‘Nabakalebara’ (new form) ritual to make the idols for the shrine in Digha. ' 'Nabakalebara’ is a ritual held every 12 or 19 years, during which the wooden bodies of the three idols are changed at the Puri temple.

The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) in Puri questioned a senior servitor on the allegation as part of an investigation.

The Odisha law minister on Monday said, “I have received the interim report from the SJTA chief administrator and the state’s law department secretary. It was found during the investigation that the senior Daitapati servitor had crafted the idols of Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath in Odisha and taken them to Digha.” “But, those idols were made by a carpenter in Bhubaneswar by using neem wood and not the sacred wood stored in Daru Gruha (wood store room) of the Puri temple as alleged. We have verified it from the Bhubaneswar carpenter who crafted the idols,” he had said in the Odisha capital.