By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, March 17, 2015 :

“Justice delayed is justice denied”. The Naveen Patnaik government seems not bothered by this legal maxim. This becomes amply clear by the fact that during 2000-2014,

What is worse is that a report of such a commission headed by retired High Court Judge Jeevan Mohan Mohapatra to enquiry in to the stampede inside Lord Jagannath Temple, Puri which caused death of several devotees, submitted to the state government nearly a decade ago is missing.

Next year’s Nabakalabela will be a testing time for the administration as huge crowd is expected to throng in to Puri during the car festival.

Replying to a question by the former minister and BJP MLA Dilip Ray on the implementation of the recommendations of Justice Mohapatra Commission Report, Law Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo said that the commission submitted its report to the then Chief Minister on 31.08.1995. But it is yet to reach Law Department.

“Under Commission of Enquiry Act State Government headed by Biju Patnaik appointed Justice Mohapatra took of the assignment seriously and submitted the detail enquiry report within a record time. In presence of top officers and several ministers he submitted his findings along with recommendations to J.B. Patnaik, the then Chief Minister. This was widely published in media with photographs”, Ray lamented.

During Nagarjuna Attire of Lord Jagannath in 1993, six persons had died and several injured. The government latter admitted that the report of the Justice J Mohapatra commission, which probed into the incident, was missing.

Members of the Assembly frequently referred to the 1993 stampede report and many of them inquired if the government had implemented the suggestions of the report.

Justice Mohapatra, is understood to have passed adverse remarks against some political leaders, administrators and police in his report and made certain valuable recommendation to avoid repetition of such unfortunate incident in the Jagannath Temple.

Ray termed the statement of Law Minister as most unfortunate. “This can be attributed as deliberate negligence and defiant attitude of state. Spending huge money from poor man’s exchequer Commissions are being appointed. Services of seasoned and experienced Judges are utilized for the purposes. If report of Justice Mohapatra Commission on the happenings of Sri Mandir is thrown to dustbin, fate of the reports of other Commissions is well imagined.”