On Tuesday, the Madras High Court ordered that non-Hindus are restricted from entering temples beyond the Kodimaram (flagpole), as temples are not meant for tourism, casual outings, or picnics. This applies to all the temples across Tamil Nadu.
The court ordered the installation of boards at the entrance of the temple mentioning, “Non-Hindus are not allowed beyond the kodimaram” which will be taken care by the state’s Hindu religious and charitable endowments.
What’s Kodimaram?
Kodimaram is the boundary suggested by the High Court for non-Hindu visitors. It is located just after the main entrance and well before the sanctum sanctorum.
The procedure of entering the Temple for non-Hindus
If Non-Hindus want to enter the temple, they will have to give an undertaking to the temple’s authority, declaring their faith in deity and commitment to adhering to Hindu practices and customs. This undertaking declaration will be maintained and recorded by the temple authorities.
Petition and the Judgement
The writ petition was filed by D Senthilkumar, a shop owner near the Dhandayudhapani Swamy Temple in Palani of Dindigul district. He sought to limit entry to the temple to Hindus only by highlighting instances in which Non-Hindus were saying, that the temple was a tourist spot, without any restriction at the entrance. He also asked for strict instruction from the court for the installation of boards for restricting entry to non-Hindu visitors.
Justice S. Srimathy of the Madras High Court said, “A temple is not a picnic or tourist spot.” In the judgment, he emphasized the fundamental rights of Hindus to practice their religion without interference and dismissed the state (Tamil Nadu) government’s plea to keep orders only to the Palani temple. He stated that implementing these restrictions would bring peace and foster communal harmony in society.
The Tamil Nadu government argued that Non-Hindus also worship Lord Murugan (deity) and follow the temple practices and customs. But Justice Srimathy rejected this argument.
Incidents of Non-Hindus entering the temple
At the Brihadeshwar Temple in Thanjavur, a group was found consuming non-vegetarian food. Another incident occurred where individuals from another religion entered the Meenakshi Sundareshwar Temple in Madurai and started offering prayers near the sanctum sanctorum.
Why this Restriction?
Temples are surely not a place of picnic but what gives an idea that only non-Hindus are considering it as a picnic spot? Some two-three incidents, that’s it?
Historically, The temples have been dominated by Upper caste people and still are. Dalits (lower castes) have been restricted from entering the temples and had to fight a long battle, to get a right to enter the temples. Dalits still face various forms of discrimination in some temples like they are denied entry, not being appointed as a priest, and not being allowed to participate in rituals, festivals, etc. In villages, this is very common and sometimes not even questioned.
Dalits have converted their religion to Buddhism, Islam, or Christianity, in the hope of escaping this discrimination. So now they are non-Hindus. So, by restricting non-Hindus from entering the temple, aren’t we enforcing the same Casteist, discriminatory practices?
