PIL questions shifting of ancient idols to ‘icon centres’

Litigant says they are being kept in a museum-like environment

A view of the Madras High Court.

A public interest litigation petition has been filed in the Madras High Court questioning the appropriateness of shifting ancient idols from temples across the State to ‘icon centres’ established in a few select temples in Tiruvarur, Tiruchi, Madurai, Tirunelveli, Salem and Vellore districts in an attempt to safeguard the idols from being stolen and smuggled out of the country.

The first Division Bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose has ordered notice to the State government as well as the Commissioner of Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE) seeking their reply to the PIL petition filed by People for Dharma Trust, a collective of activists interested in promoting charitable values, literature, science, art, education and culture.

In an affidavit filed on behalf of the trust, its authorised signatory, G. Aravindalochanan, 21, a college student, said the members of the trust recently had a meeting with well-known author, publisher, historian and epigraphist A. Krishnamachary, 75, who had recorded the history of the temple town Srirangam in Tiruchi district. The discussion with him centered around the irreligious aspects of the icon centres.

Subsequently, the trust made independent inquiries and found that idols from temples were being shifted to icon centres in utter violation of the

agama sastras (religious principles).

The agama sastras also contain detailed prescriptions on the rituals to be performed while shifting an existing temple idol from one place to another, the trust said. However, while shifting the idols from various temples to the nearest icon centres, “no ritual is followed... Icons are invariably packed in gunny bags by people other than the respective agama qualified persons,” it alleged.

It objected to keeping all kinds of idols together in an icon centre irrespective of whether they had been shifted from temples dedicated to Lords Shiva, Vishnu or Goddess Shakthi. “Due to this

agamic violation, all icons placed in icon centres are set to gradually lose their powers,” the trust contended.

It also took exception to the idols being touched by staff employed for cleaning the icon centres. “Icon centres are cleaned and maintained by people of other agamas , most of the times by ordinary staff other than the Archakas attached to the temple. While cleaning, it is inevitable to handle the icons by hand. This handling of icons by non archakas or archakas of different agamas is another violation,” the affidavit read.

The petitioner’s counsel, S. Sridharan, urged the court to issue a direction to the State government as well as the HR&CE Commissioner to return all idols in the icon centres to their respective temples.

He contended that the devotees’ right to worship the idols cannot be curtailed by shifting them to icon centres, which were functioning like museums.