Odisha Nabakalebara 2015: Badagrahis toe the Government Line

The press meet was staged yesterday to bail out the Odisha Government and protect some vested interests who created the mess, which has hurt the pride and sentiments of millions of Odias across the globe.

The Badagrahis, who were authorized conduct ‘Ghata Parivartan’ and ‘Brahma Sthapan’ were completely silenced and made to toe the government line. Just a few days ago, they acted as the whistle-blowers and exposed the wrongful act of Daitapatis, who broke the traditions and rituals.
The same Badagrahis of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra – Jagannath Swain Mohapatra, Haladhar Das Mohapatra and Ramachandra Das Mohapatra, had slammed the administration and Daitapatis, but at the press meet, they asked for forgiveness and gave a clean chit to everyone, saying whatever happened was the wish of Lord Jagannath. Interestingly, Nabakishore Pati Mohapatra, Badagrahi of Lord Sudarshan, who first exposed the Daitapatis, was not present at the press meet.

The reason is very clear. They were silenced by the BJD Government’s Ministers as well as the Administrators. Sources reveal that they and their families were under threat after the Nabakalebara fiasco came into light. “There was no departure from tradition during the rituals starting from Banajag Yatra till date barring a few trivial incidents, which are routine. There were no irregularities. The issue should not be politicised,” they said.

The Badagrahis also said that only 5 Senior Daitapatis witnessed the ‘Ghata Parivartan’ as per the tradition and hundreds of younger members followed them to present gifts to the deities in accordance with tradition. The entire process was delayed, as the number of days for carving the idols, was reduced by a day, thy argued.