On 12th December (Tuesday), temple management staff and police allegedly manhandled and assaulted devotees in the Trichy Srirangam Temple premises, in Tamil Nadu. The injured Ayyappa devotees have been admitted to Srirangam Government Hospital for treatment.
Notably, the Vaikuntha Ekadasi festival in Srirangam began today with the Tirunedum Thandakam festival and thousands of devotees visited Ranganatha in the morning. As per reports, an argument that turned violent broke out between Ayyappa devotees from Karnataka and Andhra and the temporary staff appointed by the temple administration.
Several devotees, including Andhra Ayyappa Bakhtar Chenna Rao, were assaulted. Following this, Ayyappa devotees filed a police complaint against three temporary employees Selvam, Vignesh, and Bharat who are accused of assaulting the devotees as well as against the temple administration.
As per reports, it is alleged that the police deployed in the temple premises, instead of supporting the assaulted Ayyappa devotees, supported the accused temple staff. They reportedly pushed the injured devotees out of the temple and tried to cover up the attack.
Subsequently, more than a hundred Ayyappa devotees protested at places like Karthikai Gopuram and Flagpole against the assault on devotees and mismanagement. However, the police reportedly stopped Ayyappa devotees who were protesting.
A video footage of the incident is going viral on social media which has created a stir among the devotees. Sharing the video of an injured Ayyappa devotee, BJP state president K Annamalai condemned the incident. He also launched a scathing attack on temple management authorities including Tamil Nadu’s Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments Department (HR & CE).
Annamalai asserted that a government that doesn’t believe in Hindu dharma has no business to oversee or control the management of Hindu temples.
Taking to X, he wrote, “A government which has no faith in Hindu Dharma has no business to be in Hindu Temples. The Iyyappa devotees who have had 42 days of Vrath, with all devotion, wanted to pray to Ranganatha Swamy after their return from Sabarimala. The Iyyappa devotees questioned the long wait in the queue and special treatment to a select few who were assaulted near the sanctum sanctorum & which resulted in bloodshed inside the Temple premises.”
A government which has no faith in Hindu Dharma has no business to be in Hindu Temples.
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) December 12, 2023
The Iyyappa devotees who have had 42 days of Vrath, with all devotion, wanted to pray to Ranganatha Swamy after their return from Sabarimala.
The Iyyappa devotees questioned the long wait… pic.twitter.com/4BbNii9La5
Annamalai added that the Trichy district unit will stage a protest against these assaults on devotees demanding strict action against the accused.
The post added, “This arrogance of the HR&CE department is one of the many reasons why the Tamil Nadu BJP has been wanting them out of Temple administration. Tamil Nadu BJP’s Trichy district unit will today hold a protest outside the Srirangam Ranganatha Swamy Temple against the TN HR&CE department, demanding the strictest action against those spoiling the sanctity of the Temple.”
Kerala government being accused of Sabotaging Sabarimala pilgrimage
Meanwhile, Ayyappa devotees and opposition parties have been accusing the state governments of sabotaging the Sabarimala pilgrimage. Apart from Tamil Nadu, in Kerala, the opposition leaders have alleged that the Kerala Police have been diverted to ensure the statewide trip of CM Pinnrayi Vijayan rather than providing adequate police security for management and crowd control at Sabarimala pilgrimage. The devotees have been waiting for more than 20 hours in long queues.
Several videos are doing rounds on the internet in which devotees have highlighted mismanagement for this year’s Sabarimala pilgrimage. In many cases, the police and temple management authorities have manhandled devotees for highlighting these issues. Reportedly, the devotees are facing an acute shortage of basic amenities like clean water and food, and one 11-year-old girl child died.
Fate of Ayyappa Devotees in Kerala !!!
— Hindu Seva Kendram (@HinduSevaKendra) December 11, 2023
As u all know sabarimala pilgrimage is a significant annual Hindu pilgrimage in Kerala attracting millions of devotees. Pilgrims journey to the Sabarimala temple dedicated to Lord Ayyappa, observing strict vows, including a 41-day period of… pic.twitter.com/OnB3kMhjxr
Usually we hear Swamy Saranam Ayyappa Nama japam in the queue lines but due to heavy rush and poor management pilgrims were chanting down down police and CM.
— నేనుఎవరు (@NenuYevaru) December 10, 2023
Yesterday was worst day in life.
Never travel with kids. Too much suffocation in Q lanes#Sabarimala pic.twitter.com/1CMFk0NwVD
Sabarimala has a stark insufficiency of basic amenities. Lack of access to drinking water tops the list. In the name of plastic ban, bottled water is discontinued without making adequate alternative arrangements. Least consideration for man, full consideration for money.
— Sreejith Panickar (@PanickarS) December 11, 2023
State BJP president K. Surendran accused the LDF government of sabotaging the Sabarimala pilgrimage. He stated that the Vijayan government has ignored the Sabarimala pilgrimage for its own vested interests as the pilgrims are having a very tough time with facilities appallingly poor.
The neglect of basic facilities in Sabarimala by the Pinarayi government is appalling – lack of crowd control, no drinking water, inadequate amenities. @pinarayivijayan is putting political interests over devotees' safety. Even things have reached a level that led to the tragic… pic.twitter.com/LyhcJ17CiZ
— K Surendran (@surendranbjp) December 10, 2023
He said, “The scene is such that the Vijayan government is only interested in the huge revenue being generated from the temple town and leaving the pilgrims in disarray. Another feature is the pilgrims from other states coming under duress from the police force. The Vijayan government is now showing its anger towards the believers for their combined efforts to ensure all the religious protocols in place in Sabarimala are intact, which they got from the court. Vijayan government has to change its attitude and ensure all facilities are there for the pilgrims.”
