PATHANAMTHITTA: Officials of Pachakkanam Forest Station under Pampa Forest Range of Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) have registered a case against Palakkad native Narayana Swami and seven others, including two employees of Kerala Forest Development Corporation (KFDC), for trespassing into Ponnambalamedu and performing pooja there.
Ponnambalamedu is a sacred area near Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple and entry to the place is prohibited. Pampa Range officer G Ajikumar said they have arrested two KFDC employees — supervisor Rajappan, 54, and temporary worker Sabu , 55, both Gavi natives.
He said they would soon arrest Narayana Swami and the others five persons. “As per the details we got, Narayana Swami is a native of Palakkad. But on Tuesday, he told a TV channel that he is residing in Thrissur. We are verifying the details,” Ajikumar said.
The incident came to light after the video of the ritual went viral on social media. Various departments have launched a probe. Devaswom Minister K Radhakrishnan told TNIE that he has sought a report from the Pathanamthitta district collector.
“The incident took place in the area under the forest department. The department will take strict action against the trespassers,” he said. The annual Makarajyothi is performed at the special platform at Ponnambalamedu on the Makaravilakku day. The prohibited area is situated inside the PTR in Western Ghats. Ponnambalamedu is believed to be the original abode of the presiding deity of Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. Sannidhanam can be viewed from here.
“We registered a case against Narayana Swami on Monday and filed a report in the Ranni Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in the incident. It is learnt that Narayana Swami and four others trespassed into Ponnambalamedu through forest areas. They did not travel by road. If they had, the forest department team could have blocked them at the check-post. The case was registered against him based on the video. The investigation is being led by Pampa range officer. We don’t have the details of the date or time of the pooja. We identified Narayana Swami with the help of TDB employees as he used to visit Sabarimala temple during the annual pilgrimage season and monthly poojas,” said a forest officer with PTR.
TDB president K Ananthagopan said they have lodged a complaint against Narayana Swami with the Pathanamthitta district police chief. “We came to know that he worked as assistant of a ‘keezhsanthi’ in Sabarimala. He had told TDB officials that he was an advocate and a Tamil Nadu native. But we could not verify it,” he said. The Pathanamthitta police have also launched a probe into the incident.