Tamil Nadu BJP leaders have stepped up mobilisation in Thiruparankundram ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Madurai on March 1. Modi is scheduled to address the NDA’s second rally in the state this year at Mandela Nagar near Airport Road and is likely to visit the Thiruparankundram temple after offering prayers.
According to a Times of India report, state BJP president Nainar Nagenthran urged party workers and Murugan devotees to gather for a girivalam around the Thiruparankundram hill on March 2, which coincides with the full moon day. Referring to the controversy over lighting the Karthigai Deepam atop the hill, he said, “It is well known that we are fighting to ensure the Karthigai Deepam is lit on the Thiruparankundram pillar.”
He also asked people to walk around the hill at Thiruparankundram in the evening on the full moon day, March 2.
On the Prime Minister’s proposed temple visit, Nainar had earlier said, “A sense of anguish persists among people of the majority community that they were not able to light the sacred lamp at Thiruparankundram. As a result, there is public expectation that, after the Prime Minister's visit, it may become possible to light the lamp there. Hence, there are chances of the Prime Minister going to the Thiruparankundram temple.”
BJP state general secretary Raama Sreenivasan said more than five lakh people are expected to attend the Madurai rally. Since the 2020 ‘Vel yatra’ covering the six abodes of Lord Murugan, the party has maintained focus on Thiruparankundram. Party leaders indicated that the renewed attention to the deepam issue aligns with preparations for the 2026 Assembly elections.
Separately, Tamil Nadu BJP spokesperson ANS Prasad criticised the ruling DMK government, alleging financial irregularities in the administration of temples under the HR&CE Department. “The DMK administration stands as an unparalleled exemplar of corruption worldwide. Chief Minister Stalin continues to shield his scandal-ridden ministers. Over the past five years, this regime has brazenly imprinted corruption even on the sacred consecrations of temples under the HR&CE Department. Through calculated, systematic malfeasance, over Rs 1,000 crore has been siphoned from Hindu temples,” he said.
Referring to the dispute over the lighting of the Karthigai Deepam, Prasad said, “By obstructing the lighting of the sacred Karthigai Deepam at Madurai's Thiruparankundram Temple, a grievous affront, the DMK has forfeited its moral authority to govern Tamil Nadu.”
He also criticised the state government over the distribution of Pongal benefits and accused it of attempting to influence voters through cash assistance. Prasad said the upcoming Assembly elections would determine the government’s future and asserted that a “double-engine governance” of Prime Minister Modi and Edappadi Palaniswami would bring change in the state.