The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary and the Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) to appear before the court through video conference on December 17 in connection with the Thirupparankundram lamp lighting dispute.
The court also ordered that the Union Home Secretary be added as a party to the proceedings.
The direction came during the hearing of a contempt petition filed by Rama Ravikumar, who alleged non-compliance with the court’s earlier orders regarding the lighting of a lamp atop the Thirupparankundram hill. Additional Advocate General Veera Kathiravan informed the court that a special leave petition challenging the single judge’s directive was pending before the Supreme Court.
Justice G R Swaminathan, while issuing the summons, noted the petitioner’s grievance that the authorities were “attempting to drag the case without complying with the court’s order.”
Ravikumar had sought action against the Madurai district collector, the Commissioner of Police, and the Executive Officer of the Arulmighu Subramanya Swamy Temple for allegedly failing to follow the directive relating to the traditional lamp-lighting ritual.
Later briefing the media, advocate Karthikeyan N said a statutory notice had been served on the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Madurai, asking why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him.
On December 1, the court had directed the temple administration to facilitate the lighting of the lamp on a stone pillar on the hill during the Karthigai Deepam festival on December 3. After the event did not take place as instructed, the judge allowed the petitioner and ten others to perform the ritual with CISF protection on the evening of December 3.
The court, on December 4, admitted the contempt plea and quashed the prohibitory order issued by the district collector during the festival.
