MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday directed the Madurai police to decide by June 12 on Hindu Munnani’s application seeking permission to hold a spiritual conference titled ‘Muruga Bakthargalin Aanmeega Maanadu’ on June 22.
Justice B Pugalendhi also permitted the organisation to install miniatures of the six abodes of Lord Muruga at the event venue – Amma Thidal – near Vandiyur toll plaza but restrained it from performing pujas until a final decision is made. The case has been posted for further hearing on June 13.
The court passed the order on a petition filed by Hindu Munnani state secretary S Muthukumar, challenging the police’s denial of permission to set up the miniatures. In his affidavit, Muthukumar stated that the intention was to provide devotees an opportunity to witness all six abodes of Lord Muruga in one place.
He added that pujas and distribution of prasadam were planned from June 10 to June 22, along with narration of the sthalapuranam and special features of each shrine. On the day of the conference, a collective prayer with the chanting of Kandha Shasti Kavasam and Thiruppugal would be held, he noted.
However, police had rejected permission for setting up the miniatures, citing ‘unsustainable reasons’, and kept the main application seeking permission for the conference pending, Muthukumar alleged, urging the court’s intervention.
Opposing the plea, Additional Advocate General Baskaran raised concerns about potential law and order issues, referencing the Bengaluru stampede. He also pointed out that the outfit had not properly responded to police queries regarding the expected number of visitors and presence of key individuals. The judge instructed the petitioner to submit responses to the police’s queries and directed the authorities to make a final decision by June 12.
The court permits Hindu Munnani to install miniatures of the six abodes of Lord Muruga at the event venue, but restrains the organisation from performing pujas until a final decision is made