Odisha finance minister claims Jagannath Temple funds deposited in Yes Bank

Odisha finance minister Niranjan Pujari on Sunday wrote a letter addressing the Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to lead RBI authorities to allow withdrawal of deposits of Rs 545 crore by the Jagannath Temple administration from the crisis-hit Yes Bank.

In his letter to Sitharaman, the Odisha finance minister stated that the amount has been kept as term deposit receipts(fixed deposits) and needs to be issued promptly in the interest of millions of Hindu devotees. This is an issue of religious significance for devotees of Lord Jagannath, Pujari addressed.

The Sri Jagannath Temple administration that manages the 11th-century temple had deposited Rs 592 crore in the bank till September last year. Recently it had withdrawn Rs 47 crore from the bank and the rest Rs 545 crore was deemed to mature by March 29, 2020. But a moratorium by RBI on any withdrawal over Rs 50,000 from the cash-starved bank has left the deposit in a state of obscurity.

The Odisha Congress has been criticising the BJD for letting this situation of chaos happen to such huge funds. Some opposition members have accused this to be a conspiracy to defraud the temple funds by BJP and BJD.