The High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday ordered issue of notice to the State government, on a PIL petition to restore the earlier existing ‘namam’ on the deity at the famous Sri Yoga Narasimhaswamy Temple in Melukote, Mandya district.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee and Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar passed the order on the petition filed by Narasimha Bhargava, Kasturi Narasimha Rangan, and Basari Narayanan, all devotees of the temple residing in Melukote. The petitioners pointed out that “Vadagalai Namam” was stolen along with other ornaments of the deity in 2008. And thereafter, the temple management is using only Sri Choorna Tilaka, a single line red-coloured namam on the deity without a ‘U’ shaped white-coloured namam around it.
A single red line without the white line in the shape of ‘U’ signifies Goddess Lakshmi without Vishnu and is violation of traditional practises and religious beliefs, the petitioners claimed.
The petitioners have also alleged that the authorities in the Department of Hindu Religious and Charitable Institutions have failed to adhere to the direction given by the High Court on October 28, 2015 for passing appropriate orders on the row over namam despite lapse of one-and-a-half year from the date of direction.
