Thiruparankundram Karthigai Deepam row: Devotees, TN BJP chief held

In an escalation of the Karthigai Deepam dispute, Tamil Nadu police on Thursday (December 4) resorted to public address announcements declaring that no permission would be granted to light the lamp on the ancient rock pillar atop Thiruparankundram Hill due to the state's appeal against a Madras High Court order.

The state government sought the intervention of the Supreme Court, challenging the High Court's order, saying it was leading to a law-and-order issue across the state. Devotees who arrived to light lamps following the High Court directive were swiftly arrested and bundled into vans by security forces.

Nainar Nagendran's arrest

Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagendran, who joined the protesters to negotiate with the police, was also taken into custody, sparking outrage among Hindu groups and intensifying accusations of state-sponsored suppression.

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The sacred hill of Thiruparankundram, revered as one of Lord Muruga's six abodes in Tamil Nadu and a symbol of Hindu-Muslim syncretism, descended into pandemonium this evening as police clashed with devotees demanding compliance with the High Court directive to light Karthigai Deepam lamps on the historic Deepathoon pillar. The arrests, including that of Nagendran, had the Opposition accusing the DMK government of blatant assault on religious freedom and judicial authority.

Eyewitnesses reported that over 200 devotees, chanting Muruga hymns and carrying oil lamps, were met with a wall of over 4,000 police personnel from 10 districts when they approached the hill base around 5 pm. A police officer's public announcement via loudspeaker reiterated the administration's stance: “In light of the government’s appeal against the High Court order, no one will be allowed to ascend the hill or perform the ritual.”

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As tensions peaked, scuffles broke out, resulting in minor injuries to two officers and the detention of at least 50 protesters, including women and youth wing members of Hindu outfits such as Hindu Munnani.

'Stalin's vendetta'

Nagendran, who addressed the crowd before his arrest, accused the police of “turning a peaceful devotion into a battlefield” and vowed that the BJP would not relent until the flame is lit.

“This is Stalin’s vendetta against Hindu sentiments—arresting a state president for upholding the Constitution?” fumed BJP national co-incharge for Tamil Nadu Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy, who demanded a judicial inquiry headed by a sitting high court judge into the “lathi-charge on devotees”.

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The arrests unfolded hours after the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, comprising Justices G Jayachandran and KK Ramakrishnan, dismissed the state’s appeal against Justice GR Swaminathan’s December 1 single-judge order permitting the ritual. The bench orally observed, “Communal harmony cannot be achieved by restricting religious acts. Thiruparankundram has coexisted peacefully for centuries.”

It grilled Additional Advocate General Ravindran on the imposition of Section 144, issued just 13 hours after the original order and the failure to deploy CISF personnel as directed for the devotees’ safety.

In a separate contempt hearing, Justice Swaminathan held temple officials and the Madurai Police Commissioner in contempt for non-compliance, noting that the order was “immediately communicated” yet deliberately ignored, attacking “the very foundation of the rule of law”.

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He permitted petitioner Rama Ravikumar and nine others to light the lamp themselves by 7 pm on Thursday, but ground-level enforcement faltered when police barred the CISF convoy from Madurai Bench, citing “law and order” apprehensions near the adjacent Sikandar Badusha Dargah. The matter is now listed for a 1 pm compliance report on Friday, with petitioners warning of escalated protests if the Deepam remains unlit. The state countered that the judiciary cannot “usurp executive powers” on security, and signalled a Supreme Court challenge, labelling the directive “unconstitutional”.

The incident has amplified the row into a full-blown electoral flashpoint ahead of the 2026 state polls. The BJP’s former state chief K Annamalai termed it a “DMK-orchestrated communal drama” to consolidate minority votes, pointing out that dargah officials issued no-objection certificates and locals, including Muslims, support the tradition.

“Why appeal when history and harmony back the ritual? This is vote-bank bigotry,” he posted on X.

EPS slams DMK govt

AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami echoed the demand for a probe, accusing the government of “staging riots for sympathy”.

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Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi chief Thol Thirumavalavan, however, defended the crackdown, alleging “Sanatana agitators from outside” aimed to incite violence, and reiterated calls for Justice Swaminathan's impeachment.

Meanwhile, the state government has approached the Supreme Court challenging the Madras High Court's order in the Thiruparankundram Hill Deepam issue. In its appeal, the state clarified that it put no restriction whatsoever on lighting the lamps for the Karthigai Deepam festival, and the only dispute is over shifting the location where the lamp has been lit for over a hundred years to an alternative spot on the hill. The government further contended that the High Court's directive has created a law-and-order problem across Tamil Nadu and urged the apex court to intervene.