The recent verdict of the Madras High Court directing the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department to hand over 26 cents of land belonging to the Thalaivetti Muniyappan temple on Kottai Road in Salem to the Archeological Department of Tamil Nadu promises to rekindle the fire of the Buddhist movement in the State, opening up several possibilities.
The court further directed that all Hindu rituals in the temple must be stopped immediately based on a study of the idol that confirmed it was indeed one of Lord Buddha.
While the verdict’s potential to make an impact on everyday politics in Tamil Nadu is negligible, as the temple itself isn’t a popular place of worship, scholars and Buddhist activists believe that it is bound to have a significant impact on the history and historiography of India.
