Stating that the Idol Wing police had registered a false case that idols were stolen from Rasa Kovil in Vellode in which two persons were arrested, members of the temple management committee and devotees in large numbers submitted petition to District Collector S. Prabhakar here on Thursday.
In their petition, members of Thenmugam Vellode Sathandai Kulam Rasa Swamy Narpani Mandram, said that over 10,000 people belongs to “Sathandai Koottam” of the Kongu Vellalar Gounder community and were offering prayers at the temple. In 1987, kumbabishekam was conducted and the stone idols were installed and prayers were offered. Later, the temple was taken control by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Department and later it was converted as scheme temple in 1991.
A committee was formed that administered the temple. Since, the temple was in a dilapidated state, a land was purchased near the temple and was handed over to the HR and CE Department on March 19, 2010. After obtaining the permission from the government, a temple was constructed and kumbabishekam was done on January 21, 2016. While the stone idols were kept in the new temple, the damaged idols continue to be in the old temple under the control of the department.
But, recently, based on a complaint lodged by a non-member of their “Koottam”, the police registered a case and arrested two persons of the committee. The petition said that no inquiry was conducted and case was registered. They urged the district administration to conduct proper inquiry and release the two persons.
