Supreme Court allows Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra with conditions 2020

The Supreme Court today  modified its earlier order and allowed the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra in Odisha's Puri to be held with the coordination of the Temple committee, State and Central government without compromising with the health issue pertaining to Covid-19. A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Sharad Arvind Bobde said that the apex court is only considering conducting the yatra in Puri and not anywhere else in Odisha.  "Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi not only understood sentiments of devotees but also initiated consultations," said Shah in a series of tweets while speaking on Puri Rath Yatra issue.

The apex court had on June 18 said this year’s Puri Rath Yatra cannot be allowed in the interest of public health and safety of citizens. “Lord Jagannath won’t forgive us if we allow it,” CJI Bobde had then said. The Odisha government told a bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde that it was ready to hold the procession with certain precautions. The bench also comprised of Justices Dinesh Maheswari and A S Bopanna.

In an affidavit filed before the court this morning, Odisha said its apprehension is primarily related to thousands of Rath Yatras taking place all over the state but it can only be limited to Puri alone without public attendance as proposed by Gajapati Maharaj of Puri, Chairman of the Puri Jagannath Temple administration. The government said it will make the necessary arrangements to conduct it “accordingly.”  Appearing before a bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra, the Centre also supported the Odisha government. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, said the government has no objections with the yatra and suggested telecasting it on TV in order to avoid a large congregation of people. “It is a matter of faith for crores. If Lord Jagannath will not come out tomorrow, he cannot come out for 12 years as per traditions,” Mehta said.

Today comes the happy news that Supreme Court asked the Odisha government to make necessary arrangements to conduct Puri’s Rath Yatra, scheduled to start from June 23, in a restricted manner in wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

மாறிமாறிப் பலபிறப்பும் பிறந்து அடியை அடைந்து  உள்ளம் தேறி*

The aim of life is to reach Him by serving Him and those who do kainkaryam to Him.  Srivaishnavaite way of life is singing paeans, chanting divyaprabandham, doing service and having darshan at His various abodes

Just like our Kovil Ozhugu, there is Madala  Panji, a chronicle describing the historical events of Odisha Jagannath Temple.  In the state of Odisha [Orissa] lies the famous ‘Jagannath temple’ in Puri, situate on the east coast.  The moolavar idols of Northern India are different than the ones in South India, mostly in white marble.  Puri Jagannath is different – Perumal is made of sacred wood, which are ceremoniously replaced after few years.  The  Navakalevara  ceremony is an intricate set of rituals that accompany the renewal of the wooden statues.

The Puri  temple was built in the 12^th  century atop its ruins by the progenitor of the Eastern Ganga dynasty, King Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva. The temple is famous for its annual Rath Yatra, or chariot festival, in which the three main temple deities are hauled on huge and elaborately decorated temple cars. Lakhs of devotees descend here at this holy temple town for this festival.  Inside the huge temple, the presiding deities are : Sri  Jagannath (Lord Krishna), Balabhadra (Balarama)  and the Goddess Subhadra constituting  trinity of deities worshiped at the temple.   Lord  Jagannatha is  the supreme God and the sovereign monarch of the Odishan empire. The Deities are adorned with cotton and silk fabrics, Gold Ornaments studded with precious stones, flowers of different varieties, Tulsi leaves, sandal paste, camphor. These articles are used in the daily and periodical rituals.

The annual Rath Yatra is celebrated in the month of Ashada [June-July] whence the Presiding deities Lord Jagannatha along with Lord Balabhadra and Subhadra – come out of the main temple for an annual sojourn on decorated chariots, travel to Gundicha temple about two and half miles to the northeast.

The festivity is of very huge proportion, living embodiment of the synthesis of the locals, showcasing the rich traditions of arts of Odisha.  Each year, the three chariots are constructed anew and decorated by a large group of dedicated artisans of carpentry, ironsmiths, tailors, sculptors, painters and other skilled.  The chariots of Lord Jagannatha, Balabhadra and Subhadra called Nandighosa, Taladhvaja and Devadalana have 16,14, 12 wheels respectively and are over 40 ft tall.  They are tastefully decorated with painted wood carvings, Parsav devatas and a sarathi [charioteer], appliqué patterns, flat metal shape and profuse flower garlands.  The chariots have canopies of different coloured cloth. 

The apex court also said it cannot “micro-manage” the rituals and left it to the wisdom of state, the Centre and temple management to deal with that issue. “If it is confined to Puri alone in a limited way without public attendance as proposed by Gajapati Maharaj of Puri, Chairman of the Puri Jagannath Temple administration, state govt will endeavour to make necessary arrangements to conduct it accordingly,” the SC bench said.   The apex court has also directed that the govt should impose curfew in Puri during procession. The Odisha government imposed a shutdown in Puri district from 9 pm on Monday till 2 pm on Wednesday.

The Puri Rath Yatra  which every year would be attended  by lakhs of people from across the world is scheduled from June 23. The SC said each rath is to be pulled by not more than 500 people and all of them would be tested for coronavirus. “Those engaged in pulling chariot shall maintain social distancing before, during and after Rath Yatra,” the bench said. The court directed the Odisha government to maintain a record of persons allowed in Rath Yatra, with details of their medical conditions after testing.  Media reports suggest that Apex Court has imposed certain raiders -  All entry points into Puri - airports, railway stations, bus stands, etc, shall be closed during period of Yatra;  Curfew in Puri on all days & during all time when chariots taken in procession.

Appearing before a bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra, the Centre also supported the Odisha government. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, said the government has no objections with the yatra and suggested telecasting it on TV in order to avoid a large congregation of people. “It is a matter of faith for crores. If Lord Jagannath will not come out tomorrow, he cannot come out for 12 years as per traditions,” Mehta said. The court was hearing a plea filed by the chief servitor of the Jagannath Temple Pattajoshi Mohapatra, who said the annual procession, attended by lakhs, is an “essential religious practice” protected by the Constitution, and that non-observance of the same “affects the very sanctity” of the shrine. In his plea on Saturday, Mohapatra claimed that the yatra had been held even during the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1919.

Meanwhile, the Odisha government has sealed all the entry points to Puri and no vehicle other than those for the purpose of the Rath Yatra preparation are being allowed into the temple town. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said holding of Lord Jagannath’s Rath Yatra in Puri amidst pandemic was a big challenge and called upon the people to strike a balance between centuries-old traditions and public health. “The whole world will be watching us. By performing the rituals of the Lord with discipline and at the same time adhering to social distancing and COVID guidelines, we can set an example for rest of the people across the globe,” the Chief Minister said.

Though there cannot be any comparisons – Odisha as of now has 5303 confirmed cases (1.24% of Nation); 1419 active cases (0.81% of Nation); recovered 3,863 [+143] (1.63%) and 15 deaths (0.11%).  There some zones in Chennai city that are more than this.  Sadly, Tamil Nadu continued to witness highest single-day spike in novel coronavirus cases for third day in a row with over 2,700 more cases, pushing the state's Covid-19 count beyond 62,000 today. The second-highest cases in a single day were reported on Sunday when 2,532 cases were reported in a single day. Today is the sixth straight day that the state has reported more than 2,000 new single-day virus cases.

Adiyen Srinivasa dhasan (S. Sampathkumar)

22.6.2020.