The Madras High Court expressed skepticism on 21 October 2024 regarding the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department’s authority to intervene in the disciplinary actions taken by the Podhu Dikshidar Committee, which oversees the Sabanayagar temple, also known as the Thillai Natarajar temple, located in Chidambaram, Cuddalore district. Justice M. Dhandapani raised these concerns during the hearing of a writ petition filed by G. Nadraj Dikshidar in 2023. This petition sought enforcement of an order in his favour from the Joint Commissioner of the HR&CE department, while another petition from the Podhu Dikshidar Committee’s secretary aimed to nullify the Joint Commissioner’s order, citing jurisdictional issues.
Advocate K. Harishankar, representing the committee and assisted by G. Chandrashekhar, informed the court that the Supreme Court had previously affirmed the rights of the Podhu Dikshidars to manage the Chidambaram Sabanayagar temple in the case of Dr Subramanian Swamy vs. State of Tamil Nadu (2014). Therefore, he argued, the HR&CE department had no right to interfere in the committee’s disciplinary matters.
In contrast, Special Government Pleader N R R Arun Natarajan asserted that the HR&CE could step in if mismanagement or maladministration occurred within the temple’s operations. However, Justice Dhandapani questioned how the committee’s disciplinary action against one of its members could constitute mismanagement. He further probed the basis for the HR&CE department’s authority to revoke a suspension issued by the Podhu Dikshidar Committee. “Where is your source of power to interefere with the disciplinary proceedings? The HR&CE service rules will apply only to the archakas appointed by the department, not to the Podhu Dikshidars,” the judge stated.
The judge also highlighted that a Dikshidar facing disciplinary action should seek recourse through the courts rather than approaching the HR&CE department. “The HR&CE cannot entertain such appeals just because a Dikshidar has approached them,” he remarked. Advocate C. Kanagaraju, representing Nadraj, contended that the HR&CE could intervene only if the suspension was imposed for reasons unrelated to violations of the Agama Sastras specific to the Sabanayagar Temple. The judge indicated that this matter might ultimately need to be resolved by the Supreme Court.
The Podhu Dikshidar Committee had suspended Mr. Nadraj on 21 March 2022, for allegedly instigating criminal cases against fellow Dikshitars and causing chaos within the temple administration. Although the suspension was set for one year, the Joint Commissioner revoked it on 23 June 2023. Justice Dhandapani pointed out, “Since the suspension period is over, what remains to be revoked? This indicates the HR&CE department’s eagerness to meddle in temple management.” After acknowledging that Mr. Nadraj had resumed his duties, the judge closed both writ petitions but left the question of the HR&CE department’s jurisdiction to interfere in disciplinary matters open for consideration in future cases.
It is noteworthy that the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department, which controls thousands of Hindu temples through questionable means, has no jurisdiction over the Chidambaram Sri Nataraja Temple. This temple has been managed by the Podhu Dikshitars, a Saivite denomination, for the past 20 centuries.
Not many "secular" media – especially TV channels reported this news regarding Chidambaram Temple.
When something is mentioned against Chidambaram Temple or the Dikshitars, media rushes to paint the temple and the micro community in colour black. When the truth about the… https://t.co/mic8yCcSiR pic.twitter.com/2EOlMhZN4t
— trramesh (@trramesh) October 22, 2024
(With inputs from The Hindu)
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