Tension prevailed near the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple for the second consecutive day on Sunday with Pushpanjali Swami Parameswara Brahmananda Theertha of the Munchira Madhom locking horns with RSS-affiliate Seva Bharathi over a dispute regarding the ownership of a building occupied by the latter nearby.
The simmering controversy appears to have assumed a political hue with Seva Bharathi accusing the CPI(M) of backing the pontiff.
Children’s home
The building at Mithranandapuram, near the West Nada of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple, where Seva Bharathi has been running the Ananthasai Balasadanam, an institution for children, has been the bone of contention.
Pushpanjali Swami, who accused Seva Bharathi of usurping the property, had been undertaking a week-long hunger strike in front of the building, demanding that the building be returned to the Madhom for the conduct of the Chathurmaasa pooja.
His agitation pandhal was removed by Seva Bharathi and RSS activists on Saturday evening, sparking tension in the area.
While the police lathi-charged the activists to disperse the gathering, the Swami was escorted to a safer location after he called his agitation off temporarily. The Fort police registered a case against Seva Bharathi activists following the incident.
The pontiff renewed his demonstration on Sunday, alleging that the activists had taken away various puja articles, including the ‘salagrams’, thereby disrupting the puja rituals at the temple.
While RSS activists also gathered in the area, a large police posse was soon deployed to restore calm in the area.
The Swami called off his agitation later in the afternoon in view of the hearing that has been called by the District Collector on Monday to discuss the property dispute.
Thiruvananthapuram Tahsildar G.K. Suresh Kumar had submitted a preliminary report to the District Collector a few days ago in which he stated that the land records proved that the property belonged to the Munchira Madhom.
CPI(M)-backed
A total of 23 children from economically backward families, studying in various government schools in the city, currently resided in the Balasadanam.
Seva Bharathi alleged that the Swami’s agitation was backed by the CPI (M) whose workers had erected the agitation pandhal.
They also claimed that their property was being targeted by the real estate mafia.
