CHENNAI: The Madras HC on Monday directed the HR&CE department and the DGP to file counter-affidavit to a petition seeking preparation of a crowd management and disaster mitigation plan to steer the swarm of devotees and visitors thronging the Tiruvannamalai Arunachaleswarar temple during the Maha Deepam (Deepam festival) on December 3, 2025.
Justice P B Balaji, while ordering notice to HR&CE and other respondents including the DGP, granted a week’s time for filing the counter-affidavit, and adjourned the hearing to November 24.
The petition was filed by advocate and activist ‘Elephant’ G Rajendran. He pointed out that stampedes had been witnessed in places like Allahabad, Karnataka and AP recently due to poor crowd management. Unless urgent directions are issued, there is a real and imminent risk to public safety during the Deepam festival, wherein about 40 lakh people throng the Maha Deepam day, he said.