Puri temple’s Ratna Bhandar keys go missing; Shankaracharya, BJP protest

The keys of the 12-century Jagannath Temple's treasury have reportedly gone missing, triggering protests by the Shankaracharya of Puri and the opposition BJP.

At a meeting of the Sri Jagannath Temple Managing Committee on April 4, it was recorded that the keys of the inner chambers of the Ratna Bhandar had gone missing, a member of the committee, Ramchandra Das Mahapatra, said on Sunday.

It was on April 4 that a 16member team entered the 'Ratna Bhandar' after 34 years and had a quick scrutiny of its physical conditions amid tight security following an order of the Orissa HC.

The members of the inspection team did not need to enter the inner chamber as the chambers were visible from outside through an iron grill, an official of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration had said after the inspection.

It now appears that the team members did not enter the inner chambers and saw its condition from outside with the help of search lights as the keys were not available.

Of the seven chambers of the Ratna Bhandar, the first two are outer chambers which were used from time to time, and the others are called inner chambers.

Neither the temple administration nor the Puri district treasury has the key of the inner treasury, Das Mahapatra told PTI.