The political battle over the Thiruparankundram Hills lamp row intensified on Wednesday after BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan launched a strong attack on the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government, alleging that the ruling coalition was following the previous DMK government’s approach on issues related to Hindu sentiments.
Kesavan claimed that the TVK-led coalition government headed by Tamil Nadu CM Vijay was “nothing but a rehashed duplicate” of the earlier DMK regime when it came to religious matters.
Reacting to the TVK’s move in the Supreme Court against the Madras High Court order allowing the lighting of the Karthigai lamp atop a pillar, Deepathoon, at Thiruparankundram Hills in Madurai, Kesavan accused the government of ignoring the sentiments of devotees.
“The TVK coalition government headed by Vijay seems to be nothing but a rehashed duplicate of the previous DMK government when it comes to disrespecting the sentiments of crores of Hindu devotees and preventing them from following their Dharma… This decision exposes how this TVK government is peddling the prejudiced politics of polarisation and bigoted religious appeasement. What better can you expect of a coalition government with Congress as the main partner? Everybody knows that Congress, headed by Rahul Gandhi, is prejudiced and harbours an anti-Hindu mindset,” Kesavan alleged.
He further referred to Congress’ past positions while questioning the TVK government’s stand. “Whether it was Nehru’s Congress, which opposed the reconstruction of the Somnath Mandir, or Rahul Gandhi’s Congress, which mocked the Pran Prathishta ceremony at the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya… TVK government must understand one thing – the state symbol of Tamil Nadu itself is a temple, and everybody is aware of the kind of backlash the erstwhile DMK government received with their discriminatory attitude in the Thiruparankundram temple issue.”
The controversy is linked to the Madras High Court’s decision allowing the lighting of the Karthigai lamp at Deepathoon, a stone pillar located atop Thiruparankundram Hills. In January 2026, a Division bench of the Justices G Jayachandran and KK Ramakrishnan of the Madras HC upheld a single judge order passed by Justice GR Swaminathan permitting the lighting of the Kirthigai lamp at ‘Deepathoon’ (stone pillar).
The issue became politically contentious after the previous Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government opposed the Madras High Court’s decision. The dispute involved the presence of the Subramaniya Swamy Temple, one of the six sacred Arupadai Veedu abodes of Lord Murugan, and the Sikandar Badusha Avuliya Dargah.
Kesavan also referred to earlier temple-related controversies in Tamil Nadu, claiming the previous DMK government had faced public backlash. “The TVK government, unfortunately, is following the same divisive wrong path of the DMK, and the people of Tamil Nadu will teach this TVK government a fitting lesson in the days to come,” he added.