The Madras High Court on Thursday directed Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department to ensure that all devotees, without any caste discrimination whatsoever, are allowed to participate in the ongoing Chithirai-Vaigasi festival at Droupadi Amman temple at Marakkanam in Villupuram district.
The summer vacation bench of Justices B. Pugalendhi and V. Lakshminarayanan passed the orders while disposing of a public interest litigation petition filed by local resident B. Nagaraj who complained to the court that the Scheduled Caste people were being sidelined from the 22-day temple festival that commenced on May 14.
In his affidavit, the petitioner said the temple had a list of 22 Ubayadharars (donors) for conduct of the festival but, ironically, no one from the Scheduled Caste had been included in the list. Though it was a public temple and not a denominational temple, rampant discrimination was being practised unabashedly, he said.
