Dalits enter TN village temple for first time in 70 years
Tiruvannamalai (TN), Jan 30: For the first time in about 70 years, Dalits offered prayers in their village temple near here on Monday following 'peace' talks facilitated by the district authorities with dominant castes.
Amid tight police security, in the presence of top district and police officials, villagers belonging to the Scheduled Castes entered the temple premises with garlands, flowers and others offerings to the presiding deity. Amid palpable excitement, they hailed the deity with chants and offered prayers.
The village is Thenmudiyanur under Thandrampattu taluk in northern Tiruvannamalai district and the place of worship is Muthumariyamman temple, a goddess Shakti shrine.
While authorities did not specifically mention that it is for the first time that Dalits are visiting the village temple, people belonging to the Scheduled Castes said that they are entering the shrine for the first time. Local people are of the view that the temple is 80-year old. The government said it is 70-year old.
C Murugan, a Dalit resident told reporters: "For about 80 years, Dalits could not enter the village temple. The district authorities including police officials together have got us a new liberation to offer worship. We thank the authorities and the government. We are overwhelmed by boundless joy. I am 41 years old and I am standing on the temple footsteps for the first time. Such was the caste barrier in the village and the authorities have reformed the people".
A girl, also a Dalit said she was thrown out of the temple years ago and only now she could enter the shrine.
District Collector B Murugesh said the temple is 70-year old and belongs to the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department. Coinciding with the annual harvest festival of 'Pongal,' each community gets a day to offer 'Pongal' (A sweet dish made with rice and jaggery) in the temple premises and they make worship. It goes on for about 15 days. This year, the Adi Dravidar (SCs) people had sought permission to offer pongal. However, other sections of people opposed it, he told reporters.
"All are equal under the Indian Constitution. There must not be discrimination in any respect." This was conveyed to those who opposed Dalit entry and peace talks were initiated by district authorities which includes police and revenue officials. Eventually, the issue was amicably settled and Dalits offered worship, he said.
Ahead of the temple entry, a team of officials, led by Deputy Inspector General of Police (Vellore range), M S Muthusamy and Police Superintendent (Tiruvannamalai district) K Karthikeyan held peace talks with villagers. They underscored that under the law all are equal and there must not be any kind of discrimination.
After the entry to one Muthumariamman temple, people belong to Dalit community prepare Pongal to offer the Deity in #Thenmudiyanur of #Thiruvannamalai district pic.twitter.com/bIIRyZwEf8
— Nithya (@NityaPandian) January 30, 2023
Dalit people in Thenmadiyanur village in Tiruvannamalai district were let inside a Muthumariyamman temple belonging to HR&CE dept after 80 yrs. Dalits in the village were denied entry inside the temple ever since it was constructed 80 years ago. pic.twitter.com/LYWgVbuwrs
— Prabhakar Tamilarasu || பிரபாகர் தமிழரசு (@pkr_madras) January 30, 2023
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BCCI unveils diktat: Domestic cricket must, restriction on personal staff, family stay on tours
New Delhi, Jan 16 (PTI): Mandatory domestic cricket, restriction on the presence of families and personal staff on tours and a bar on individual endorsements during series were among a slew of measures that the BCCI unveiled on Thursday in a 10-point policy to promote "discipline and unity" in the embattled national cricket team.
Non-compliance would invite sanctions, including cuts in their retainer fee from central contracts and a bar on participating in the cash-rich Indian Premier League.
The measures have been announced in the wake of the team's disastrous tour of Australia which was preceded by a series whitewash against New Zealand at home.
The Board has approved only a two-week window for families to stay with the players during overseas tours, besides imposing restrictions on personal staff, and commercial shoots.
"Any exceptions or deviations must be pre-approved by the Chairman of the Selection Committee and Head Coach. Non-compliance may lead to disciplinary action as deemed appropriate by the BCCI," the Board policy states.
"Additionally, the BCCI reserves the right to take disciplinary action against a player which may include sanction against the concerned player from participating in all BCCI conducted tournaments including the Indian Premier League; and deduction from retainer amount/match fees under BCCI Player contract," it warns.
The document also states that from now on, players won't be allowed to travel separately during a tour and would also be discouraged from leaving early in case a tour or a match ends early.
