MADURAI:Animal activists lodged a complaint with the Temple Police station against Meenakshi Amman Temple management for keeping a camel inside the temple premises illegally.
The Indian Centre for Animal Rights and Education (ICARE) managing trustee A Muralitharan stated in his complaint that according to the guidelines of the Rajasthan government a camel should not be taken outside the State without proper agreements.
“Twenty years before there was no camel in the temple. Since the last few years the temple authorities were detaining a camel inside. Temple authorities cannot maintain a camel properly. It has many wounds on its body because of lack of maintenance. This is a punishable offense under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960,” said A Muralitharan.
Stressing the need to release the camel from the temple, Sunitha Christy of People for Animals, a non-profit organization said, “The camel’s age is 13. It was brought to the temple eight years ago. Due to poor maintenance, the camel is now counting its days with a weak body and deep wounds.”
She also said, a camel in the temple did not even get water properly. Three camels already died in Thiruparangundram because of lack of maintenance. She added that if the camel was not released by June 22, she would file a writ petition before the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court.
Temple officials claim that keeping the camel inside the temple premises is not illegal. A senior official from Meenakshi Amman Temple said, “The camel has been maintained properly and veterinarians are doing medical check-ups regularly. We keep the camel inside the temple in accordance with the temple rules. If any complaint is made, we will look into it,” the officer said.
