Puri: A police official allegedly touched the idol of Devi Subhadra during Niladri Bije ritual of deities in Odisha's Puri yesterday.

According to reports, Amulya Kumar Dhar, former inspector of Sea Beach police station here, touched the idol while the servitors were taking it inside the sanctum sanctorum during pahandi of the Lords.

The cop was on cordon duty near the Baisi Pahacha, reports said.

Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator PK Jena said IG (central range) has been entrusted to conduct a probe into the matter.

The CCTV footage of the pahandi will be examined as a part of the investigation, he said.

Worth mentioning, the SJTA has banned touching of deities by devotees during Ratha Yatra this year.