DMK govt says no curbs on Ram Temple celebration; but Governor joins BJP offensive

AS THE RAM Temple consecration was being held in Ayodhya Monday, the Tamil Nadu government found itself facing allegations at home and in courts over alleged attempts to stop devotees from celebrating the event.

Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman led the allegations, and Governor R N Ravi took up the matter, talking of a “pervasive sense of fear”, even as the state government denied having issued any such order.

The M K Stalin-led DMK government also threatened legal action against a prominent Tamil daily that reported Sunday that it had banned special pujas and live telecasts of the Ayodhya event.

Reacting to this report, Sitharaman first attacked the DMK government, slamming its “anti-Hindu, hateful action”. “In TN there are over 200 temples for Shri Ram. In HR&CE managed temples, no puja, bhajan, prasadam, annadanam in the name of Shri Ram is allowed. Police are stopping privately held temples from organizing events. They are threatening organizers,” she tweeted.

HR& CE is the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department that manages temples in Tamil Nadu.

Soon after the Union minister’s tweet, HR&CE Minister P K Sekarbabu said no limitations had been imposed on devotees’ freedom to offer food, conduct pujas, or distribute prasad in state temples.

However, Sitharaman repeated her allegations on Monday. “The repression saga in Tamil Nadu continues,” she tweeted, alleging that a small village in Chengalpattu district had been prevented from celebrating the event and that LED operators planning to telecast it had been threatened.

She seemed to be referring to the removal of LED panels from Kamakshi Amman temple in Kanchipuram, which officials and police attributed to permission issues.

Visiting Sri Kodandaramaswami Temple