MADURAI: Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations passed off peacefully in Thiruparankundram Hill, where the temple-dargah issue had prevailed previously, with Muslims offering special prayers at the Sikandar dargah on Monday.
Prayers were offered at the Sikandar Badusha Dargah mosque in the foothills ahead of the special prayers at Nellithoppu in the hills. Additional police force was deployed in the locality, as has been the case during the festival over the years, police said, adding that the deployment of personnel was not particularly related to the temple-dargah row.
SDPI members, however, issued pamphlets in the locality to condemn the recent arrest of the party’s national president Faizy. Earlier in February, the Thaipoosam festival was also celebrated peacefully at the Subramaniya Swamy Temple in Thiruparankundram.
A police officer said that the tension between the religious communities has come down in Thiruparankundram recently. Apart from the routine bandobast duty, the police force deployed in the locality has also dropped in number. The Madras High Court also did not entertain a few of the PILs filed from both sides, seeking favouritism for their sides, thereby avoiding further protests, rally and tension in the region, the officer added. Meanwhile, the matter is under judicial consideration.