K Radhakrishnan, the Devaswom Minister in Kerala, has got himself in trouble after using holy Sabarimala temple water as a hand sanitiser. The incident happened on November 13 during his visit to the temple while priests were preparing to open the gates of the temple for the devotees for the season.
According to the reports, the temple priest performed pooja and gave holy water to the people present as part of the ritual. They were supposed to consume it and apply rest on their head. However, when he gave the water to Radhakrishnan, he was caught on camera using the water as a sanitiser and not smearing it on the head. His act was captured by several media persons present in the temple.
The minister drew criticism on social media networks for disrespecting the holy water of the Sabarimala temple. Notably, Devaswom Board president Ananthagopan and local legislator Pramod Narayanan were also part of the pooja. Reportedly, they smeared the water on the head as per tradition, unlike Radhakrishnan.
Temple reopened for mandala makaravilakku festival
The Sree Dharma Sastha Temple at Sabarimala in Pathanamthitta district, Kerala, has been reopened for the devotees for two days in the light of the mandala makaravilakku festival. As per the government’s regulations, devotees visiting the temple were asked to bring negative RT-PCR reports for Covid-19. Also, an Aadhar card was a must to secure entrance to the temple. Only 30,000 pilgrims to be allowed in the temple per day.
Mamata Banerjee was criticised for disrespecting Charnamrit
Earlier on November 1, it was reported that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee drew flak from the devotees on social media for disrespecting Charnamrit meant for consumption during her visit to Goa’s famous Mangueshi temple. In a video capturing Banerjee’s visit to the temple, she can be seen spilling the Charnamrit on the floor offered by the temple priest. At the end of the video clip, the priest was seen to be surprised by the act, trying to stop the Chief Minister from spilling the holy water on the floor.
