Bhubaneswar, June 3: Servitors of the Jagananth temple in Puri today boycotted the third rath yatra co-ordination committee meeting demanding that their right to touch the deities during the car festival should not be curtailed by the authorities.

They said they should be allowed to touch the deities, a right they have enjoyed for generations.

Daitapati Niyog (servitors' association) president Ramkrushna Das Mohapatra said: "Today, we submitted a memorandum to the law minister. If this issue is not settled, the servitors are not likely to cooperate with the administration in the conduct of coming rath yatra. If anything wrong happens during the car festival, no one should blame the servitors."

Law minister Pratap Jena, on the other hand, said: "We have received the petition from the servitors. We will discuss the issue with them and sort out the matter. We will appeal them to cooperate with the authorities for the smooth functioning of the car festival."

Chief temple administrator P.K. Jena said: "We will take up all the issues raised by the servitors. If these issues are not settled before the car festival, we will sort out these things after the car festival in a time-bound manner."In the memorandum to the administration, they also cited record of rights of the Jagananth temple in which in it has been clearly written that they enjoyed the rights to the deities. Binayak Das Mohapatra said: "The high court clearly states that the servitors cannot touch the deities for three days during the rath yatra. On the remaining six days, we can touch the deities. Darshan and touching deities are the birth right of servitors. But, attempts have been made to curtail it."

In another development, the core committee member of the Archaeological Survey of India, N.C. Pal, has said the ongoing repair works of Jagmohan, the prayers hall of the 12th century shrine, has been completed. More than 90 tonne of steel has been used to support the 16 pillars erected for the purpose. "People can enter the sanctum sanctorum of the main temple after the rath yatra is over," he said.