News Tamil Nadu

DMK HR&CE Minister Sekar babu Makes Insensitive Comments About Devotees Standing In Queue For Long Time At Tiruchendur Temple

January 20, 2025
The Commune

A viral video featuring PK Sekar Babu, the DMK Minister for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE), has sparked widespread backlash on social media. In the video, Sekar Babu appears to insult devotees in Tiruchendur by saying, “He goes to Tirupati and waits 24 hours in queue, but that won’t count,” disregarding the long wait and hardships of the devotees, including women, children, and the elderly, who were struggling in a long queue with inadequate facilities.

The Tiruchendur temple’s beach area is also grappling with severe sea erosion. A large 7-foot-wide crater has formed in the bathing area in front of the temple, prompting authorities to ban devotees from bathing there. This damage to the temple beach has led to calls for the government to address the ongoing erosion issue.

In response to these concerns, DMK Thoothukkudi MP Kanimozhi, HR&CE Minister Sekar Babu, Minister for Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Anitha R. Radhakrishnan, and District Collector K. Elam bahavath visited the Tiruchendur temple beach on 18 January 2025. During their visit, a group of devotees, who had been waiting for over four hours on the public darshan queue to see the deity, began shouting slogans at the ministers. They complained about a lack of drinking water, the inability to see the deity, and the crowded conditions, especially with children.

One of the women devotees expressed her distress, saying, “We can’t move in this crowd, and the children are starting to faint.”

Another angry devotee also voiced his frustration, saying, “Look at how many children are crying and shouting here. There’s no milk, nothing, without it they are crying in distress. We are humans too, right?” He pointed out the unbearable conditions after standing in the queue for long hours.

As the ministers walked by, having arrived to inspect the Tiruchendur beach erosion, another devotee, standing on the rail, shouted, “We condemn the HR&CE department!”

In the midst of this, HR&CE Minister Sekar Babu remarked, “What shall we do? If he is in a queue. One should stand in queue if he comes to temple. He goes to Tirupati and waits 24 hours in queue, but that won’t count,” while walking away from the crowd. The exchange, along with the video of the incident, has since gone viral on social media. Members of various Hindu organizations have expressed their anger, accusing the minister of making disrespectful comments towards the devotees.

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