BHUBANESWAR: Some devotees from Hyderabad were heckled by a priest at Jagannath temple in Puri on Monday after they hired another priest to be their guide. Police have registered a case against the errant priest Dunga Guru following a complaint lodged by one of the tourists.

Soon after reaching Puri on their maiden visit, the tourists took the help of Sukudi Singhari to move in and around the temple. "Guru suddenly appeared before them and started shouting at Sighari and the pilgrims. Guru claimed to be having dominion rights on tourists from Hyderabad," said temple's inspector M N Senapati. "Based on the tourist's complaint, we have registered a case against Guru, who is on the run," Senapati said.

Disagreement among priests over devotees from other states is common at Jagannath temple. The issue had raised its ugly head during the visit of President Pranab Mukherjee on April 25. Three priests had then claimed to be Mukherjee's family panda. Amid the controversy, Mukherjee refused to accept the service of any of the three priests.