Ban mobile in temples: HC to HR&CE 

MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court ordered the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment (HR&CE) Department to ban the usage of mobile phones inside all the temples in Tamil Nadu to maintain the ‘purity and religious sanctity.’

The petitioner M Seetharaman, a Thirisuthanthirar of Sri Subramania Swamy Temple of Tiruchendur in Thoothukudi, filed the PIL seeking effective measures to prohibit the possession and usage of cell phones inside the Thiruchendur temple as devotees take photographs and videography without any restrictions.

This is against the agama rules and compromises the security of the temple, he added. He mentioned there were probable opportunities for taking photographs of women devotees, without their consent, which would be misused. Such a ban has been adopted in Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple in Madurai as a measure of religious sanctity and safety, and separate locker rooms were provided outside the temple premises to keep the cell phones, the petitioner said.

Justices R Mahadevan and J Sathya Narayana Prasad, who heard the case, said the authorities have to take steps to prohibit cell phone usage inside the temple premises, so as to preserve the sanctity of the temple, apart from ensuring the safety of the devotees. The usage of phones and cameras diverts devotees’ attention.

Ban on mobile phones has been introduced and successfully implemented in temples (for example: Sri Krishna Temple in Guruvayur,  Sri Venkateshwara Temple in Tirupati)  across the country. The court learned that the temple authorities in Tiruchendur had already taken measures for the mobile phone ban, decent dress code, and others inside the temple premise and ordered the HR & CE to follow the same in all Tamil Nadu temples.