Sudarsan mugged during pulling of chariots in Puri

Bhubaneswar: A group of outlaws befriended renowned sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik, attacked him and robbed his gold chain in the crowd during Bahuda Yatra in Puri on Thursday. Pattnaik, who suffered injuries on his neck, lodged a complaint at Kumbharapada police station.
The brazen loot occurred near Badasankha on the Grand Road when the chariots were being pulled back from the Gundicha Temple towards the Jagannath Temple.A large number of police personnel were present in the vicinity when the incident occurred.
"I was present amidst the crowd at Badasankha to catch glimpse of the deities. As Lord Balabhadra's chariot neared the place where I stood, a man approached me. He shook hands with me and said he likes my sand arts. Suddenly, another man pushed me from the behind. As I fell down, he forcefully grabbed my neck even though I was groaning in pain. The man, who befriended me, snatched my luck chain, laced with golden lockets of Jagannath and Ganesh," Pattnaik told TOI.
Pattnaik said he drew the attention of the director general of police K B Singh on the incident. Police said they were investigating the matter. "We will find out if the place of occurrence comes under the CCTV cameras installed at the area," a police officer said.