News Tamil Nadu

Compulsive Commentator Sumanth Raman Argues For Non-Hindus’ Entry Into Temples; Gets Schooled By Temple Activist

January 31, 2024
The Commune

Compulsive commentator and ‘neutral’ political analyst Dr. Sumanth C Raman who is known for commenting on everything under the sun, posted on X about the recent judgement of the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court. The ruling which prevents non-Hindus to entering the temple has been critiqued by the left-liberals and Dravidian Stocks without knowing about the laws and history behind the issue. Dr. Sumanth Raman joined the bandwagon by posting on X, ‘Disagree with this. As long as the rules of the temple are followed, anyone must be allowed to visit and worship. Hindus worship at Velankanni and Nagoor in TN. Why shouldn’t other faiths visit Palani? Argument that temples are not picnic spots is valid. Except that the assumption that for all people of other faiths, visiting a temple is a picnic and for all Hindus it is a matter of faith, is absurd. Let us be honest. A large part of religious tourism is just tourism. This applies to all faiths not just Hindus. I know so many who visit our ancient temples to learn about our culture, marvel at the architecture etc. Why is that bad?‘

While superficially the argument might make sense but TR Ramesh, who was the original petitioner in the case, came out with his counterattack. In his reply to Sumanth Raman, TR Ramesh stated, ‘Non – Muslims are not allowed in the entire region of Mecca. Not just the Holy Mosque. We do not call it absurd. If one feels non-Hindus should be allowed inside Ancient Agamic Temples one should challenge the Tamil Nadu Temple Entry Authorisation Act, 1947.  Because this Govt Legislation clearly  BANS non-Hindus inside Tamil Nadu temples. In fact, allowing non-Hindus up to Kodi Maram or the Holy Mast is in violation of the Rules framed under the Act. Devotees visit various temples with devotion and faith. It’s called pilgrimage. It is not tourism. Temples were not built for tourism or picnics. Let’s not compare Hindus with those of Abrahamic faiths.‘

He further added in his reply some practices today which are against temple rules:

“I have some questions regarding your observation “as long as the Rules of the temple are followed

1. Why are offices are built inside temples? 

2. Why are Annadhanam halls built inside temples? 

3.  Why are toilets built inside temples? 

4. Why is temple money taken for HR&CE Dept expenses? 

5. Why there are special Dharshans for persons paying extra money? 

All above are against temple Rules. 

Just a few examples to show Temple Rules will be never followed as long as the @tnhrcedept present in temples  only by FRAUD controls Hindu temples”

With these replies, Sumanth conceded, ‘Agree with you entirely that temple should be a place of sanctity and rules should not be violated.‘

This isn’t the first time Sumanth Raman has been compelled to comment on an issue without fully understanding it. The complete compilation of his compulsive commenting history is given below.

In January 2024, he criticized the India Today for being quoted by Israel at the ICJ in the Gaza deaths hearing. He said it was not a matter of pride but a shame.

He trivialised the petrol bomb attack at Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi’s residence in October 2023. Not only that, but he had written on his X handle that a petrol bomb attack did not indicate a breakdown of law and order. When a user raised concerns about the ease of obtaining such bombs, Raman responded by simplifying a petrol bomb as “petrol set alight with some cloth in a bottle and thrown.”

In March 2023, he spread fake news about NPCI charging a fee for UPI transactions without verifying its accuracy. After the National Payments Corporation of India clarified that the charges applied only to Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPI) and not to UPI transactions, Sumanth deleted his tweet. He then acknowledged the misinformation and stated that the fee was only for transactions through wallets and credit cards, not bank debits.

In May 2021, at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic (Delta variant second wave), he questioned the efficacy of the DRDO-developed 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) drug for COVID-19, labelling it as ‘unproven stuff.’

In April 2021, after actor Vivekh suffered a heart attack, Raman attempted to raise concerns about COVID-19 vaccination by suggesting a potential link between the vaccination and the actor’s illness, prompting backlash. He had also tried to raise “concerns” about the COVAXIN vaccine and question its efficacy, despite the vaccine receiving approval from regulatory authorities in India.

As recently as the 22 January 2024 Pran Prathishta event, Sumanth Raman made a post implying that if it had not been for the demolition of Babri Masjid, there wouldn’t be so much fanfare associated with the consecration today. He also said that the celebrations were nothing but, ‘stoking a community into feeling they have got retribution’.

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