Iritti: CPM leader E P Jayarajan’s controversial visit to a temple at Muzhakkunnu was not for worship, the temple management has said. The MLA, then a minister, was invited to view the murals and woodwork inside the temple.
Reports of Jayarajan’s visit to the Mridangashaileswari Temple a year ago kicked a hornet’s nest as the CPM discourages its leaders from following religious practices.
On Wednesday, the temple’s executive officer issued a press release to clear the air on the row.
He said that the former minister was just obliging the temple management’s request to view the murals inside the temple which were in need of restoration and repair.
“Though the then minister Jayarajan was invited to attend a cultural meeting in the temple on October 13, 2016, he could not reach the temple. Later he was invited to inaugurate a cultural meet and the felicitation of martial arts expert Meenakshiyamma, who was honoured with a Padmasree award, on April 6, 2017.
“He was ushered in from the town to the accompaniment of music and martial arts. We requested him to view the ancient and rare murals and sculptures inside the temple and to allot government funds to conserve them. He entered the temple along with the representatives of the devaswom and viewed the art works.
“He felicitated Meenakshiyamma Gurukkal, delivered a speech and visited the devaswom office before he returned. Please do not create a controversy out of a people’s representative’s visit to a temple and draw the temple into that controversy,” the release read.