Chennai: Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman continued to attack the DMK government in Tamil Nadu for using police force for blocking the public screening of Ram temple consecration.She also shared a video from the famous Kamakshi temple in Kancheepuram claiming that policemen removed LED screens from the temple premises.
Speaking to reporters in Kancheepuram, the union minister alleged that the Tamil Nadu police 'is being misused' by the 'Hindu hating' DMK regime to thwart public screening of the Ayodhya ceremony and celebrations to mark the event. The DMK 'is clearly showing its personal hatred' for the Prime Minister and 'suppressing worshippers,' she alleged.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi on Monday alleged that priests and staff of a Shri Ram temple here, under the control of the state government, faced 'repression' while the entire country celebrated the 'Pran Pratishtha' of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya.
The Governor said on X: "This morning I visited Sri Kodandaramaswami Temple, West Mambalam, Chennai, and offered prayers to Prabhu Sri Ram for the well-being of all. This temple is under HR & CE Dept. (Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the state government)."
He alleged: "There was an all-pervasive sense of invisible fear and apprehensions writ large on the faces of priests and temple staff. A stark contrast to the festive environment in the rest of the country. While the entire country is celebrating the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla, the temple premises here exude a sense of acute repression."
The TN government has dismissed the BJP's allegation that permission is denied by the HR and CE Department to hold celebrations in temples to mark the Ayodhya ceremony.
Sitharaman asked: "Can any citizen be denied watching the honourable Prime Minister?"
"What right does the DMK have to infringe on my right to worship? I challenge the DMK government; that it is infringing on my right to worship as a Hindu; it is infringing on my right to watch (the Ayodhya ceremony)..."
On Sunday, citing a Tamil daily's reportage, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday alleged that the Tamil Nadu government administered temples have barred puja for Lord Ram on the day of the consecration of the grand temple in Ayodhya, which was dismissed by the state as a false news with ulterior motives.
