CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Tuesday stated the Tamil Nadu government can decide whether to lift Covid-19 curbs on temples for Vijayadasami celebrations. A division bench of Justices R Mahadevan and Abdul Quddhose said, “We leave it open to the government authority to decide.”
A petition was filed before the court praying for orders to lift covid restrictions imposed on temples for facilitating the devotees to worship ahead of Vijayadasami. Responding to the petition, Advocate General (AG) R Shanmugasundaram informed the Chief Minister would chair a meeting of experts on Wednesday to discuss the matter and make a decision.
He pointed out a letter sent by the Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in September stating the daily Covid-19 cases reported to be around 30,000, and hence there is a need for continuous focus on prompt and effective containment measures. The letter further stated following the various festivities till December, it is a critical period, and people would have the tendency to ignore safety measures during festival and in large gatherings, he noted.