TIRUNELVELI: Muharram Santhanakoodu procession was held at the centuries-old Ervadi dargah, dedicated to saints Hasan and Husain, after a gap of 10 years on Wednesday.
The dargah management had been organising the annual Muharram ceremony for decades as per the customs, with the Santhanakoodu procession, the beating of drums and other rituals such as ‘Kuthirai Pancha’.
However, the Thowheed Jamath was opposed to these customs, and due to law and order concerns, the procession was put on hold for 10 years.
The dargah management approached the high court and obtained a favourable order, following which the ceremony was conducted on Wednesday. Earlier, the flag hoisting ceremony was held on July 7, the Quran recital from July 7 to July 17 and the Kuthirai Pancha on July 14.
Apart from Muslims, Hindus and Christians also took part in the procession. Nearly 800 police personnel, led by Superintendent of Police N Silambarasan, were deployed in Ervadi to avoid any untoward incidents.