The story so far: Eager to stop Naveen Patnaik from winning a historic sixth term in Odisha, the BJP has launched sharp attack with the State’s most prominent religious controversy — the missing keys of Jagannath temple’s ‘Ratna Bhandar.’ Led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP has accused Patnaik’s government of ‘sending the keys to Tamil Nadu’ — an indirect dig at Patnaik’s close aide V.K. Pandian.
Addressing a public meeting in Cuttack on May 20, Mr. Modi said, “Even Jagannath Mandir is not safe under BJD rule. For the past six years, the keys of Shri Jagannatha’s ‘Ratna Bhandar’ has been missing. Leaders of BJD are involved in this conspiracy.” Taking a dig at Mr. Pandian, a Tamil Nadu-born former bureaucrat, he claimed that “there were discussions as to how the keys had gone to Tamil Nadu,” vowing to probe this if the BJP is voted to power. The ‘missing keys’ issue has also been raised by other BJP leaders like Union Ministers Amit Shah, Smriti Irani and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, echoing Mr. Modi’s accusation against Mr. Pandian.
Odisha is currently polling in four phases simultaneously for 147 Assembly seats and 21 Lok Sabha seats.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Jagannath temple during a roadshow supporting BJP candidate from the Puri constituency, Sambit Patra, for the Lok Sabha polls, in Puri on May 20, 2024, | Photo Credit: ANI
Mr. Pandian retorted in a statement to PTI on May 21. “The prime minister should find out where the keys have gone if he has so much knowledge. He has so many authorities under him, he would be having some knowledge. He can enlighten the people of Odisha.”
Here’s a look at the six-year controversy and why the BJP is raking it up again.
What is the ‘Ratna Bhandar’?
The gold and jewels offered by devotees to the deities at the Puri Jagannath temple — Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra — is stored in the Ratna Bhandar, located adjacent to the Jagamohan (prayer hall) at the north side of the temple. As per the Orissa Review, published by the State government, the Jagannath Temple Act, 1952 was passed to allow the State government to have a bigger say in the management, administration and governance of the temple. Under this law, a list of the ornaments and gold offered to the deities was prepared and preserved in the Record Room of the Puri collectorate.
The Ratna Bhandar has two chambers: the ‘Bhitar Bhandar’ (Inner Treasury) and ‘Bahar Bhandar’ (Outer Treasury). As per the last inventory in 1978, the Bahar Bhandar stores 87 pieces of gold ornaments, some with precious stones, and 62 pieces of silver items. The Bhitar Bhandar has 367 gold items including ornaments studded with precious stones, plates of gold, pearls, diamonds, corals and other precious stones and 231 items of silver articles. The safety of the Ratna Bhandar vests with the Temple’s Managing Committee, which is headed by titular ‘King of Puri’ Dibyasingha Deb (Chairman), the Chief Administrator (sn IAS-level officer) and other members appointed or nominated by the State government.
Sand art depicting the Ratna Bhandar by Sudarshan Patnaik
The items in the Bhitar Bhandar are never used and are stored under a double lock, sealed by the Managing Committee, and the keys are generally deposited by the temple administration in the Government treasury. The locks may be opened only if ordered by the State government. However, items used for special occasions are stored under double lock in the Bahar Bhandar, which may be opened in the presence of temple officials and the Chief administrator from time to time. Items used daily are locked and under the protection of the Bhandar Mekap. The last two types of ornaments stored in the outer treasury are compared and verified periodically —at least once every six months.
Initially, the Puri royal family, the temple committee and the Puri collectorate had copies of the keys to the Ratna Bhandar. In 1963, after losing a case challenging the State’s ownership of the temple, the royal family surrendered its copy to the State treasury. However, the other two copies remained with the temple committee and the Puri collectorate.
When was the Bhitar Bhandar last opened?
The last time the Bhitar Bhandar was opened for taking stock of the inventory was in 1978, Law Minister Pratap Jena said during the 2018 Budget session of the Odisha Assembly. As per the inventory, gold items weighing 4364 bhari (50 kilograms) and 14,878 bhari (173 kilograms) of silver were stored in the inner treasury, apart from a sizeable amount of gold ornaments used regularly in temple rituals. It was once again opened in 1985 for maintenance work, but no inventory was conducted.
Since then, the temple administration has tried to open the inner treasury twice but stopped short, fearing that the sentiments of devotees may be hurt.
The last such attempt was made on April 4, 2018, when the temple administration wanted to open the inner treasury for inspection, but was unable to do so as the keys to the room could not be found. The 16-member team, which included three members of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), were forced to inspect the inner chamber from outside using search lights through a grill gate.
The inspection was done as per the orders of the Orissa High Court, which was monitoring temple repairs undertaken by the ASI since 2016, and a report was submitted to the High Court in a sealed cover.
What happened after the ‘missing keys’ row broke out?
The news first broke on June 1, 2018, when the Puri District Collector Arvind Agarwal, who was in-charge of the keys to the inner chamber, revealed at the temple managing committee meeting that there was no information confirming the availability of the keys.
Amid an uproar from citizens, devotees and the Opposition (BJP and Congress), the Naveen Patnaik administration ordered a judicial inquiry into the issue on June 5, 2018. The inquiry commission, headed by retired High Court judge Justice Raghubir Das, submitted its 324-page report to the State government in November that year.
As pressure mounted on the State government, the temple’s chief administrator P.K. Jena was shunted out.
Within ten days of investigation, on June 13, the Puri district administration stumbled upon a brown sealed envelope allegedly containing the duplicate keys to the Bhitar Bhandar inside a locker in the district record room. These keys were deposited with the district treasury by Mr. Agrawal prior to his transfer in August that year.
However, the Opposition and even the Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati remained critical of the BJD government, blaming it for laxity, and demanded strict action against the guilty officials. Senior BJP leader Biswabhusan Harichandan (now the Governor of Chhattisgarh) claimed that there had been no record of the existence of duplicate keys to the inner chambers, demanding a definite answer from the Chief Minister in the Assembly, as reported by The Sunday Guardian on September 1, 2018.
Raising concerns about the contents of the Bhitar Bhandar, Mr. Harichandan said, “Opening the treasury and preparing a fresh inventory should be the top priority of the State government.” Odisha Congress veteran Niranjan Patnaik too voiced the same demand.
What is current status of the missing keys probe?
In April 2023, Dilip Kumar Baral, a Puri resident, filed a PIL in the Orissa High Court seeking the tabling of the judicial committee’s report on the missing keys probe in the State Assembly. According to Mr. Baral, the State government has reportedly spent around ₹23 lakh for the Commission of Inquiry, but had kept the findings secret from the public. The report which was submitted to the State government in 2018 is yet to revealed.
Later that year, the Jagannath Temple Managing Committee adopted a resolution to open the Ratna Bhandar on August 4, allowing an ASI team to survey the chamber’s contents. However, the State government, which has the final say in opening the Bhitar Bhandar, is yet to take a call. The Odisha High Court has also adjourned the hearing in the case, allowing the State government additional time to file an update on the status on the probe. Both BJP and Congress have publicly protested against the BJD’s reluctance to open the inner treasury.
File photo: Odisha Congress President Sarat Pattanayak along with other party workers stage a demonstration over various demands including the reopening of all four gates of Lord Jagannath Temple for devotees, in Bhubaneswar on November 9, 2023. | Photo Credit: ANI
“Resentment is brewing among devotees of Shree Jagannath Temple over non-opening of Ratna Bhandar. Devotees want to know if ornaments remained as safe as before,” claimed Sameer Mohanty, former BJP State president. The Odisha Congress also held a Tulasi Yatra (collection of holy basil) from locals in December 2023 to pressure the State government to open the Ratna Bhandar. The collected basil leaves were then offered at the temple by Congress leaders.
In February 2024, as per the High Court’s orders, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik formed a 12-member committee, headed by former Supreme Court Justice Arijit Pasayat, to oversee the inventory of jewellery and other precious stones kept in the Ratna Bhandar. Other members include cardiologist Ramakant Panda, Vidhu Bhushan Samal, the former Chairman and Managing Director of Allahabad Bank; the Temple Committee’s chairman Dibyasingh Deb and ASI representatives. However, the CM has not revealed when and if the missing keys probe report will be tabled or when the inner chamber will be opened.
