HC directs Agamic committee to identify peacock idol in Mylai temple

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Friday directed the five-member Agamic Committee appointed for finding out temples following the agamic rules to make appointments of Archakas to ascertain whether a peacock with a flower on its beak or a peacock having a snake on its beak was present in Arulmigu Kapaleeswarar temple, Mylapore.

The first bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice N Mala passed the direction on hearing a petition filed by Sri Rangam-based Rangarajan Narasimhan. The petitioner sought a direction to take action against people who had stolen the original peacock idol which had a flower on its beak. The petitioner noted that the original peacock was replaced with a forged one which has a snake on its beak.

When the matter was taken up for hearing, the Chief Justice MN Bhandari directed the Agamic committee to find out the nature of the committee. The judges noted that if the findings of the committee would come to a conclusion that a peacock with a flower was placed in the temple, the HR&CE shall take steps to remove the current peacock idol by replacing it with a new one which would have a flower on its beak.

“If the committee identifies that the peacock had a snake on its beak, the existing idol can be allowed to be in place in the temple,” the judges observed.

The court further noted that the committee shall expedite the work to identify the originality of the peacock idol citing the case is pending for a long time.