As the ruling Biju Janata Dal and opposition BJP are engaged in a war of words over the Puri Heritage Corridor Project, senior saffron party leader Bijay Mohapatra targeted the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and alleged that the central agency was responsible for the mess.
While demanding a CBI probe into the entire corridor project episode, Mr. Mohapatra on May 24 said: "The ASI remained silent all along when the state government demolished mutts and also excavated bug pits within 75 metres from the protected monument like Shree Jagannath Temple." Had ASI done its job properly and raised an objection from day one, this controversy would not have taken place, he said.
Mr. Mohapatra alleged that the ASI had taken any active interest in the project from the beginning.
