The Kerala High Court on Monday declined to order a probe into the controversy over the sighting of Makarajyothi in view of the submission by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) that lamps were lit at Ponnambalamedu every year at the end of the two-month Makaravilakku season at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple.
A Division Bench said there was no need for further probe into the matter in response to the petitions filed by a rationalist organisation, the Kerala Yukthivadi Sanghom, and others. A fresh controversy over Makarajyothi erupted in the wake of the Pulmedu tragedy, which claimed the lives of 102 pilgrims last season.
Makarajyothi, which appears at dusk on January 14, marks the climax of the Makaravilakku season beginning mid-November. Lights flicker above Ponnambalamedu, east of the Sabarimala temple, during Makarasamkramam.
The TDB submitted before Justices Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan and S.S. Satheesachandran that the lights seen at Ponnambalamedu at the time of ‘deeparadhana' were man-made. The lights or deepams seen at Ponnambalamedu were not Makarajyothi, as stated by the petitioners.
Makarajyothi was a star seen at the time of ‘deeparadhana', with no human intervention. The TDB pointed out that it had not propagated that the lights seen at Ponnambalamedu were a supernatural event. In fact, the lamps were lighted as part of the continuation of a religious ritual practised by tribes residing at Ponnambalamedu, ‘moolasthanam' of the temple.
The court said the submissions were nothing but a true “exposition of the fact,” which could answer “the inquisitive mind” of any scientific-tempered person. This was an age-old practice intricately connected with the faith of worshippers. Therefore, there was no need for a further probe into the matter.
The court pointed out that there was no material on record to show that the lighting expenditure was funded by the secular government. The lighting of lamps could not be termed a non-forest activity meant to derecognise the age-old rituals. Therefore, there was no reason to refuse permission to carry out the rituals at Ponnambalamedu under the supervision of the Forest Department and the police.
Court directive
The court directed the Forest Department and the police to provide aid and support for performing the ritual.
