Source: lite.epaper.timesofindia.com
CHENNAI, INDIA, December 29, 2009: Madras high court has ordered the trustees of a temple in Pottai village in Villupuram district to allow the the temple car to go through a dalit colony.
Passing orders on two writ petitions, one filed by the trustee of Aru lmighu Poottai Mariamman Temple near Sankarapuram and an opposing one filed by 10 dalits belonging to the village, Justice K. Chandru said that the trustee’s petition “…cannot be accepted by this court. Any such order in their favor will amount to perpetuating untouchability, which has been specifically prohibited by Article 17 of the Constitution.”
The festival turned controversial in 2007 when Dalits staked their religious rights over the temple, which is under the control of the state government’s Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Department. Last year, the authorities were able to broker peace by running a sagadai, which is a small-sized temple car, through the Dalit colony. This year no amount of persuasion and peace committee meetings could solve the tangle.