The Hindu Religious Charitable and Endowments Department has appointed assistant archakas and archakas belonging to non-Brahmin communities at the Mariamman Temple at Samayapuram and at the Subramanya Swamy Temple at Kumara Vayalur near Tiruchi to fill up the vacant posts at both shrines.
Orders have been issued to the archakas who joined duty on Sunday. While some had alleged in social media that the serving Brahmin archakas were asked to leave compulsorily in some of the shrines in and around Tiruchi, officials refuted claims.
The Department officials said three assistant archakas have been appointed at Samayapuram Sri Mariamman Temple; two archakas for the Sri Adhi Mariamman Temple at Samayapuram and one archaka each for Sri Ujjaini Kaliamman Temple and Sri Muktheeswarar Temple. The Adhi Mariamman, Ujjaini Sri Kaliamman and Sri Muktheeswarar temples are also situated at Samayapuram. In addition to these posts, the Department has appointed an Odhuvar and two others for playing thavil and nattuvan at the Samayapuram Mariamman Temple.
An orientation training would be provided to the assistant archakas appointed to the Sri Mariamman temple as they would be assisting the existing archakas at the shrine. The Samayapuram temple has only three archakas on the record list who have been engaging their family members and others to assist them in the daily rituals, a senior official said.
“We are only executing the government instruction in appointing archakas and assistant archakas belonging to non-Brahmin communities to the Samayapuram Mariamman temple and other shrines in the same town by filling up the vacant posts”, said Ms. Kalyani, Joint Commissioner of the Samayapuram Arulmigu Mariamman Temple.
“We have not sent out any archakas from the temple”, she said categorically. A priest of the temple also maintained that no archakas were sent out from the shrine.
Another official said three vacant posts of archakas have been filled up at the Sri Subramanya Swamy Temple at Kumara Vayalur on the outskirts of Tiruchi. One of the newly appointed priests is a Brahmin and the remaining two were from non-brahmin communities. The temple has six approved posts of archakas of which three were already serving at the temple. Applications were called through advertisement for selection of three vacant posts. The appointments have now been made and the archakas have joined duty, he added.
A senior official of the Rockfort Sri Thayumanaswamy Temple at Tiruchi said the department has appointed two posts, a parisaragan and another person at the madapalli where the prasadam for the deities are prepared. The official also categorically stated that no archakas had been sent out.