MADURAI: The vacation bench of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Friday issued notice to the Sikandar Badusha Dargah, the Subramaniya Swamy temple devasthanam, and the district authorities on a petition seeking direction against permitting performance of Kandoori during the Santhanakoodu festival on Thiruparankundram hill between December 21 and January 6.
The petitioner, M Manickamoorthy of Madurai, stated that following attempts made by the dargah members to celebrate Kandoori, which involved animal sacrifice and serving a non-vegetarian feast (Samabanthi) on the hill in December 2024 and January 2025, litigations were filed against such practices on the hill. Deciding these litigations, the HC, in October, had prohibited the dargah from performing animal sacrifice on the hill, he added.
However, the dargah members have circulated pamphlets and put up posters that they were going to celebrate Kandoori and Santhanakoodu festival in the dargah from December 21 to January 6, he alleged. Though the permission for the Santhanakoodu festival was granted based on a peace committee meeting held on December 18, the proceedings did not mention anything about the Kandoori festival, he claimed.
The authorities have violated the court’s order by granting permission to the celebrations without prohibiting the performance of Kandoori on the hill, he alleged, adding that by failing to raise objections, the temple management is also siding with the ruling party and engaging in vote-bank politics. Apprehending that animal sacrifice is going to be performed on the hill during the celebrations, he sought an interim injunction against the same.
Justice M Jothiraman refused to order an interim injunction and told the dargah’s managing trustee to file a counter affidavit at the next hearing on January 2.