Hundreds of Odisha Congress workers, led by the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Sarat Kumar Pattnayak, on Monday held a massive rally and barged into the Puri Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) office, demanding the immediate opening up of three gates of the 12th-century shrine that had been closed since the Covid-19 pandemic. They also demanded the treasure trove (Ratna Bhandar) of the temple be opened.

Although the pandemic was over, the three gates of the shrine remained closed to facilitate the beautification drive around the temple under the Heritage Corridor plan.

The devotees are now allowed to enter the temple only from the front gate (Lion’s Gate). Hundreds of people make queues outside the temple stretching for around two kilometres, making it difficult for the elderly people to enter the shrine to have a darshan of the lord.

PCC president Pattnayak said: “The Kartik month (considered an auspicious one) begins at the end of October. Thousands of widows will turn up at Puri to have a darshan of the deities. We have set a deadline for the temple administration to open the three doors for the devotees. By October 28, all the gates should be opened up for devotees. If it fails to do so, we will intensify our stir across the state.”

The PCC president said: “The Covid is no more. What’s the problem in opening the doors for the convenience of the devotees?

The Congress also raised the issue of opening up the Ratna Bhandar of the Shree Jagannath Temple and making an inventory of its ornaments.

“We want to know whether the ornaments of the lord are safe or not. Whether the valuables stored in the chamber are safe.” said senior Congress leader Prasad Harichandan, adding that this is a fight to save the dignity of Odias.

The party also raised the issue of handing over the land acquired by the government for the proposed Vedanta University on the outskirts of Puri. The Congress workers said as the Vedanta had backed out of the project following the Supreme Court’s verdict, it should hand over the land to the people.

SJTA chief administrator Ranjan Kumar Das said: “The Congress delegation led by its president has submitted its memorandum to us addressing the governor. We will take up the issue with the management committee and discuss the matter with the state government.”