Puri: Two groups of priests, locally known as pandas, fought over their share of donations given by devotees at the 12th century Sri Jagannath temple in Orissa today and the scuffle was so intense that one of them ended up getting a bloody nose.
After the unseemly fight, purification rituals had to be conducted on the deities after the 'Ratna Sinhasan' in the sanctum santorum of the popular shrine had blood splattered on it.
The fracas took place during "Sahana Mela" (public darshan) of Lord Jagannath before noon during which one of the priests was found bleeding from the nose after being hit by another, police sources said.
When blood was found on the 'Ratna Sinhasan', which is considered a bad omen, a "Maha Snana"(holy bath) was done for the deities leading to a delay in normal activities at the popular shrine.
The incident took place in full public glare in the presence of police and officials of Sri Jagannath Temple administration.
The priest who was injured on the nose was rushed to a hospital.
A case was registred at Sinhadwar Police Station against one of the priests for ssault, the sources said.
The behaviour and conduct of some Pandas at Lord Jagannath has often come under criticism.