Bhubaneswar, July 25: Servitors of the Jagannath temple in Puri have threatened not to allow foreigners on the chariots of the holy Trinity from the next rath yatra.

The threat follows a controversy sparked by allegations of Italy-born Odissi dancer Ileana Citaristi being manhandled by a servitor.

“They (foreigners) don’t understand the sentiments of the sevayats and the Jagannath culture. Since they are trying to defame the Jagannath culture by raising unnecessary issues at various points at the national and international level, it is better to clamp a ban on their access to the chariots,” said Jagannath Swain Mohapatra, chief servitor of Lord Jagannath.

Citaristi lodged an FIR on July 21 alleging that a servitor had manhandled her atop Lord Jagannath’s chariot, Nandighosa. She alleged that he hit her thrice on the head when she refused to pay dakshina as demanded by him.

Swain Mohapatra said the Odissi dancer had identified a 75-year-old-man, who allegedly misbehaved with her but he apparently found the accusation hard to believe. “The person concerned actually tried to dissuade devotees from touching the deity because some rituals were in progress at that time. She did not understand it,” he said. “Lakhs of devotees come during rath yatra. If something goes wrong, attempts should be made to settle the issue amicably and not malign the Jagannath culture,” he said.

Last year, a foreigner was also beaten up while attempting to climb the chariots and it snowballed into a major controversy. The administration had to intervene to bring the situation under control.

Ileana condemned the servitors’ threat. “If discipline is not followed while managing crowds on the chariots, such incidents will recur. Anyone, be it a foreigner or an Indian, will be subjected to humiliation,” she said.

Since only Hindus were allowed inside the temple, Ileana said rath yatra was the sole occasion for non-Hindus and foreigners to climb the chariots and touch the Lord. “Being a Jagannath devotee, I will certainly go to Puri on rath yatra next year to see my Lord,” she said. Ileana also stressed on the need for training servitors. “Had they been properly trained and more disciplined, this incident would not have occurred,” she said.

Expressing solidarity with Ileana in the wake of the attack on her, noted Odissi dancer Aruna Mohanty said: “As Lord Jagannath comes out of the temple to mingle with devotees once a year, no one should be barred from getting on the chariot. However, if they decide to impose a ban, it should apply to everybody and not just foreigners.”

However, noted Jagannath scholar Surjyamani Nath Sharma said: “No one should be allowed to climb onto the chariots. When the Lord is on the chariot, all rituals followed in the temple are observed on the chariot itself. It becomes a place of worship. So no one should be allowed to vitiate that sanctity,” Nath Sharma said.

However, since there exists a tradition of allowing devotees to meet the Lord on the mounts during rath yatra, he said he would not object to it. “Nearly 50 lakh people visited the chariots and there was no problem. If a problem arises because of one foreigner, then for the greater good, they should not be allowed to climb the chariot,” he said.

Temple public relations officer Laxmidhar Pujapanda said: “The temple management committee has already raised the issue before the Shankaracharya of Puri and he will take a final call on this issue.”