In yet another attack on Hindu temples in Tamil Nadu, the rock-cut mountain temples on top of Aththri Hills in Alvarkurichi in Tirunelveli district have been vandalised by Islamists recently.
According to a report by Kathir news, the rocks surrounding the Hindu temples on Aththri hills were desecrated allegedly by Muslims, who painted the Islamic symbol “crescent moon” on the sacred rocks. The culprits also wrote “Allah”, along with an Islamic symbol and the number 786, atop the hill.
The act of vandalism on the Hindu temples has shocked the devotees, who have demanded that the Tamil Nadu government and its Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department immediately intervene to stop the encroachment of Hindu temples.
Reportedly, the HR&CE Department of Hindu Religious Affairs is responsible for managing the administration of the Arulmigu Anusuyadevi Sameda Aththri Parameswar temple and Gorakkar temple on Aththri Hill in Tirunelveli. The river Kadanaa, known as Aththri Ganga Theertham, is a perennial river and also home to a rare white turtle.
Devotees fear encroachment of sacred hill
The devotees fear that Islamic organisations are attempting to encroach the sacred hill and accused the state forest department of aiding these culprits to trespass into lands belonging to Hindus.
The incident comes at the backdrop of several such incidents of vandalism against Hindu temples in the state of Tamil Nadu. Recently, a Chola-era Shiva temple in Pudukkottai district was found desecrated, and idols of the deities were beheaded by unknown assailants.
A group of unknown assailants had entered the Kailasanathar temple in Keezhananchur village in Pudukkottai district earlier in June and damaged the Shivalingam present inside the temple. The assailants had also damaged idols of many deities, including Lord Shiva, Ganesha, Parvathi and Nandi installed in the Chola-era temple.
Similarly, in the Ranipettai district, Amman statues were disfigured, and semen was ejaculated over the idols in the historic Panchalingeswarar temple, creating a massive outrage in Tamil Nadu.
