Kendrapara: The management of the 300-year-old Jagannath temple at Keredagada village in the district plans to remove the barricade at the sanctum sanctorum for unhindered darshan of the lord by the Dalits.

This temple in the sleepy village in Kendrapara had hogged spotlight more than a decade ago over the Dalits' right for darshan of the lord.

Earlier, Dalits had no access into the temple. They were only allowed to peep through the built-in holes on the boundary wall to catch a glimpse of the lord.

Till 2006, the members of the Dalit communities used to have the darshan of the lord through the nine holes created on the temple wall.

However, after days of simmering dispute that had threatened to disrupt peace in the locality, the members of the upper castes had relented and broken the age-old barriers by letting the Dalits enter the temple on January 14, 2007. Orissa High Court had also ruled that the Dalits had the right to enter into any Hindu temple.

The administration then brokered out a truce between the warring groups. However, the sanctum sanctorum of the temple remained out of bounds for the Dalit devotees. The Dalits were allowed to have darshan only from a barricaded site outside the temple structure. The in-built holes of the outer wall, that symbolised the caste divide, have now been blocked by the district administration.

"As the Dalit devotees are now being denied the lord's darshan from a close distance, devotees and followers of Jagannath cult have been left disappointed. So, we have begun the process to remove the barricade to allow everybody access to the deity. People from all sections will be taken into confidence. The administration will play a role in the affairs," said scion of Kanika estate Sibendra Bhanjadeo and trustee of the temple.

"Scion of the erstwhile Puri royal family Dibyasingha Deb, who heads the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration in Puri, has assured us of all help," he said.

Rajnagar tehsildar Nihar Ranjan Mallick said: "We have not yet received any proposal in this regard from any quarters. However, the administration will act as facilitator if consensus emerges over this sensitive issue."

Case against Panda

The Kendrapara Sub-Divisional Magistrate's Court here on Thursday directed police to register a criminal case against suspended BJD MP Baijayant Panda for filing a false affidavit during the 2014 general elections. Acting on a petition by Dillip Das, the court directed the police to register the case under Section 125-A of the Representation of People Act and sections 415, 416, 417, 418, 419, and 420 of the IPC by July 25. The petition said Panda was officiating as vice-chairman of IMFA, a fact that he failed to disclose in his affidavit.