The minister's reaction came in the wake of criticism and raging debate on right-wing social media groups against the TDB's circular.
Kerala Minister K Radhakrishnan (Supplied)
With the circular issued by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) banning the activities of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on the premises of the temples under its management sparking debate, Kerala Devaswom Minister K Radhakrishnan on Thursday, 26 October, justified the move.
The minister said that it was not to keep anyone away from shrines but to maintain a peaceful atmosphere there.
The circular, issued by the Devaswom commissioner last week, was not intended to prevent anyone from entering the temples, and a controversy over that was totally unwarranted, he told reporters.
The minister’s reaction came in the wake of widespread criticism and raging debate on right-wing social media groups against the TDB’s circular, alleging that it was a move by the LDF government to keep the Sangh Parivar away from shrines in the state.
The TDB is the apex temple body that manages major shrines in Kerala’s Travancore region.
“Places of worship should always be the centres of peace… There should be an atmosphere where all devotees can come and offer their prayers in a peaceful manner,” Radhakrishnan said.
It doesn’t mean that anyone would be checked from entering the shrines, the minister said. He also appealed to everyone to withdraw from such controversies.
The TDB issued a new circular last week banning the activities of the RSS on temple premises and its properties.
According to the circular issued by the Devaswom commissioner, the namajapa protests (protests by chanting mantras) have also been banned inside the premises of shrines managed by the temple body.
It said all the activities of the RSS, as well as other outfits with “extreme ideologies”, without the permission of the TDB, have been prohibited.
The circular, dated 20 October, directed the Devaswom Vigilance Wing to carry out surprise raids to find out whether the RSS or other outfits were running shakhas (branches), mass drills, or arms training on temple properties.
It directed employees and priests of respective temples to inform the TDB management about the presence of such outfits and their operations, if any. Those who failed to inform the same would face disciplinary action, it said.
The circular also made it clear that photos, flags and flex boards of those who have no relation to the temples should not be kept on their premises.
Any failure to follow the directives would be treated as a violation of the high court verdict in this regard, it added.
Meanwhile, the RSS leadership in the state had termed the move a politically motivated decision and is planning to explore all options, including legal remedies.
RSS pranta karyavahak PN Eswaran had said on Wednesday: “The new directive is part of a decision to strictly implement TDB’s earlier directives in this regard. The CPI(M) has been trying to take over the running of temples under the TDB through its nominees. Naturally, there will be resistance from Hindu organisations. That’s why such a politically motivated decision has been taken. As an organisation, we will take a decision on the future course of action after discussing with legal experts.”
Last month, the Kerala High Court said that no mass drill or weapons training shall be permitted on the premises of Sarkara Devi Temple in Thiruvananthapuram district, which is under TDB’s management.
The direction came while disposing of a plea filed by two devotees seeking an order to prevent “illegal use and unauthorised occupancy” of the temple premises by the RSS and its members.
The TDB had, on 18 May, issued a circular asking officials to strictly follow its earlier order banning RSS branches or mass drills in the shrines under it.
In that circular, the TDB had said that stern action would be taken against the officials who refuse to follow its 2021 order in the same regard.
TDB, in March 2021, had asked its officials to prohibit the RSS from holding drills at temples under the board. The board directed its officials to ensure that armed or unarmed drills did not take place on temple premises.
It also advised the officials against providing temple resources to third-party groups.
Even earlier, the TDB had, in 2016, issued a circular banning all types of arms training in the temple complexes by the RSS. Later, on 30 March, 2021, the board reissued the circular asking the officials to take action in this regard.
In 2016, the then Devaswom Minister, Kadakampally Surendran, had alleged that the RSS was trying to turn temples into storehouses of arms in Kerala and that the government had been receiving a large number of complaints in this regard.
(With PTI inputs)
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