CHENNAI: No serving priest has been removed from their posts in temples managed by the Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments (HR & CE) department to accommodate the new appointees, chief minister M K Stalin told the state assembly on Tuesday.
He said vested interests were carrying out misinformation campaigns in social media to discredit and disrupt the government’s efforts to ensure social justice. He was referring to social media campaigns against a government order which paved the way for all Hindus, irrespective of castes, to become priests.
“By implementing the order and issuing appointments (to non-brahmin priests), the government has fulfilled the dream of former CM M Karunanidhi, who wanted to remove the thorn in the heart of Periyar,” the CM said amidst applause.
“Unable to tolerate our sincere efforts, they (certain sections) have engineered devious plans to disrupt it,” said the CM pointing to some social media campaigns that spread misinformation that new archakas (priests) have been appointed in the place of the serving priests in temples managed by the HR & CE department.
Stalin had issued job orders to 24 trained non-brahmin priests, including five dalits and a woman odhuvar, to mark the 75th Independence Day.
No one has been relieved from their posts, the CM clarified. “If such an incident happened somewhere and is brought to our notice with evidence, the government will take appropriate action,” he said. “People are well aware that some sections are trying to spoil the efforts of the government for their own political gain and disturb social justice,” said the CM.
Earlier, HR & CE minister P K Sekar Babu said nothing would stop the government from appointing trained archakars, irrespective of their caste, to ensure social justice to all. “Some elements are spreading false information that new appointments were made to replace the existing priests,” he said.
All the 58 appointed as archakas are duly qualified. “There is no violation of the Constitution as being alleged by a section of the priests” the minister told reporters later.
He blamed “some Hindutva forces” for the mischievous campaign. Only those who have been trained in ‘Agama Shastra’ (Hindu scripture) and below 35 years were appointed as archakas, the minister said.
A priest of Venkatachalapathy temple in Sattur in Virudhunagar, who retired 13 years ago, continued to work in the temple. The department treated the post vacant and appointed a trained Vaishnavite priest, Srinivasan. “On humanitarian grounds, the department allowed the retired priest to continue to work in one of the sub-temples as per the CM’s direction. No priest has been relieved or removed from work,” the minister clarified.
