The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) would intervene in the Thiruparankundram Karthigai Deepam dispute if required, the organisation’s chief Mohan Bhagwat said on Thursday, December 13.
Speaking at an event in Tiruchirappalli, Bhagwat said that the resolution of the issue requires a Hindu mobilisation and that the Sangh won’t get involved at the moment as it is sub judice. “The awakening of Hindus in Tamil Nadu is enough to bring about the desired result,” he said.
He said the Sangh would decide whether its intervention was required based on the information given by the organisations on the ground. “Hindu organisations working in Tamil Nadu will let us know if [our involvement is] needed; at present it is not needed. It can be resolved on the basis of the Hindus' strength in Tamil Nadu. We will not need to escalate it. But one thing is for sure: the issue will be resolved in favour of Hindus. Whatever it takes for that, we will do it.”
Reacting to the RSS chief’s statement, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam spokesperson advocate Saravanan Annadurai said, “Mohan Bhagawat doesn’t understand Tamil Nadu. For people here, religion is a personal thing. A 1000 Bhagawats cannot influence Tamil Nadu. Dravidianism rules here.”
He further said, “Stalin has set an example of how to stand up to the BJP and how to diffuse the communal poison spread by the BJP. They don’t understand the feelings of the people of Tamil Nadu.”
Saravanan Annadurai added, “Why should there be a Hindu uprising to light a fire on a survey stone? The temple is the appropriate authority. They have followed the ritual and lit the lamp at the appropriate place. Some miscreants have agitated over there, and they were stopped by the government and police. We will have a Dravidian uprising against them.”
The Thiruparankundram hill in Madurai bore witness to tensions when Hindutva outfits raised demands that the Karthigai Deepam ritual lamp should be lit at the higher of two peaks of the hill, near the Sikandar Badusha Dargah, instead of the usual place on the Uchipillaiyar koil.
The issue had caused a spat between the state government and the Madras High Court. Justice GR Swaminathan of the Madras HC had allowed a petition by right-wing groups for the Hindu groups to light the Karthigai Deepam, but the government had blocked them, citing law and order issues. On December 3, the day of the lighting, the situation had turned volatile with the right wing outfits clashing with the police.
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