Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Fears over order on temple ornaments

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State Information Commission’s directive to permit an individual to have a ‘darshan’ of the ornaments of Parasurama Temple at Thiruvallom, near here, and provide a copy of the ornaments register is feared to set a ‘wrong precedence’ and cause serious security problems in future.

The commission has issued the directive to the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) on the basis of an individual’s request under the Right to Information Act to have copies of the ornaments stock register.

TDB sources told The Hindu that the directive to provide access to the ornaments and give copies of the stock register would set a ‘wrong precedence’ and the board would be forced to oblige to more such requests in future. The rulers of the erstwhile State of Travancore had handed over the temples and its belongings to the government. The belongings were kept in the strong rooms under tight security at the 18 group headquarters under the board.

Giving details of the precious ornaments and other valuable assets of the 1,200 temples from Thiruvananthapuram to Thrikaariyur in Kothamangalam would have serious security ramifications. All strong rooms are located on the premises of temples and the board maintains a special ‘mahasar’ to record the dates and timings when they are opened. The strong rooms are opened only on special occasions, mainly in connection with the annual festivals, in the presence of the assistant devaswom commissioner and the sub-group officers concerned. The ornaments are taken out in a procession, which is also part of the festival. If the list of ornaments is published, it may cause a security breach. Though the board does not question the intentions of the applicant, it is feared that the facility may be misused by miscreants, including extremist elements. It could even lead to the theft of these prized possessions, which have high antique value.

Though the applicant had sought only the list of the ornaments, the commission has also directed to show him the ornaments kept in the strong room. The commission said the ornaments should be shown “without detriment to the religious rituals and security considerations.” It said the RTI act visualises the security of the nation and not that of a limited interpretation regarding an institution.

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