TN BJP chief, others detained at Thiruparakundram hillock

TAmil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagenthran was arrested by the police force on th when he attempted, on with several other Hindutva activists, to go atop the Thirupparankundram james jerome hill hither to light the ‘Karthigai Deepam’ oil lamp on a stone pillar there.According to police, when Nagenthran and others, including the petitioner Rama Ravikumar, tried to go atop the hill to light the lamp, they were told in clear terms that they will not be permitted.Also, it was conveyed to them that the government was preparing to go on an appeal against the High Court order that allowed lighting the lamp.As Nainar and others did not disperse, they were taken in a police van and taken away from the spot that led to the hilltop, which is also close to the Thirupparankundram temple on the foothill. Those detained include Hindu Munnani cadres as well. However, the petitioner dispersed after arguing with police officialsMeanwhile, the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday mounted sustained attacks on each other over the recent clashes at Madurai district’s Thiruparankundram after the local police refused to allow a Hindu activist to light the Karthigai Deepam at the Deepathoon atop the Thiruparankundram, as per a December 1 high court order.“No matter how hard the sectarian forces try, the peace in Tamil Nadu cannot be disturbed,” said state minister and DMK leader S Regupathy. He added that under chief minister MK Stalin’s leadership, the BJP’s communal influence would be kept at bay.Regupathy also took the opportunity to attack the AIADMK, BJP’s key ally in Tamil Nadu and the second Dravidian heavyweight in the state.“It is shameful that AIADMK has become a pawn of the BJP and RSS, who support the thugs trying to create unrest in Tamil Nadu... The people will teach them a lesson,” he said.The BJP and the AIADMK both slammed the comments, with AIADMK’s general secretary Edapaddi K Palaniswami (EPS) saying on Thursday, “People will soon teach a fitting lesson to Stalin’s government which has forgotten that a chief minister must govern impartially without leaning towards any religion,” EPS said. He also demanded the immediate release of those arrested and sought implementation of the court’s order“If anyone had to be aggrieved, it was the Dargah committee, and they were not the ones filing an appeal against the order of the Madurai bench of the Madras high court,” said former state BJP chief K Annamalai.“Because they know there is an established history to the lighting of Karthigai Deepam on the Stone pillar near Sikandar Dargah. When will the DMK stop pitting people against each other to further their appeasement politics? Will they follow the court orders, at least now, or resort to their usual theatrics?” he questioned.Speaking to PTI Videos, senior BJP party leader and former governor of Telangana, Tamilisai Soundararajan, said the Tamil Nadu government should have taken the verdict in a positive way.“It has been the ritual for hundreds of years. The Hindu religious leaders appealed for it because it is our right and the government should have given protection,” added Soundarajan.