No political interference in pass allocation, says Minister R. Nirmalkumar

Minister for Energy Resources and Law R. Nirmalkumar and Minister for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments S. Ramesh inspected the arrangements for the consecration festival of Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple here on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters, Mr. Nirmalkumar said the consecration ceremony of the temple, being held after 17 years, was being conducted in a grand manner.

“A control room has been set up by coordinating all government departments to monitor the operations and ensure that devotees can have a safe darshan without any difficulty. To prevent any errors, surveillance is being carried out through CCTV cameras. Personnel from all departments are engaged in duties on a two-shift rotational basis,” he said.

“Other devotees will not be allowed into the Chithirai streets until everyone who went to the upper tier to watch the consecration has safely exited the temple area. Only thereafter will other devotees be allowed,” he said.

“The areas surrounding the Meenakshi Amman Temple have been brought under police control. As many as 6,500 police personnel are engaged in security duty. By contacting the Board of Trustees Chairman and the trustees, we will inquire about their requirements and the kind of support they need through the Joint Commissioner and fulfil their needs and demands,” Mr. Nirmalkumar said.

As a number of judges were attending the consecration festival, arrangements had been made to escort them and provide parking facilities for their vehicles, he said.

“We have capped upper-tier access at 9,000 people. Of these, 2,000 passes are being allocated to the general public through a lucky draw, while up to 3,000 passes have been distributed to donors. The Joint Commissioner holds the official list of donor passes,” he said.

Mr. Nirmalkumar reiterated that false rumours were being spread about the passes. “I have not even seen a single pass, nor have I interfered in the matter. The temple administration operates entirely under the Joint Commissioner, and I have kept my hands off it,” he said.

Mr. Ramesh said that 27 Oduvars from across Tamil Nadu had been appointed to conduct rituals and chant in Tamil at the places where the yagasalai rituals were being held.

“The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu is always one who gives prominence to Tamil. We will give importance to Tamil in the TVK regime. Accordingly, since the 11th, Oduvars have been chanting mantras in Tamil. All arrangements are underway to conduct the consecration in Tamil,” he said.

None of the Oduvars appointed by the government was protesting, he said. They were working in the yagasalai and would also be permitted to pour water on the temple tower kalasam and enter the sanctum sanctorum to perform the consecration, he added.