Madras HC Orders Temple to Light Deepam at Thiruparankundram Deepathoon, Ends Decades-Long Row

• The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court ruled that the Temple Devasthanam must light a lamp at the Deepathoon in Thiruparankundram.
• The court affirmed that lighting a deepam at an elevated location is a long-established Hindu tradition for devotees to see.
• It rejected the state's argument of public peace disturbance as an "imaginary fear" and criticized the "mischievous" claim about the pillar belonging to a dargah.
• The High Court directed that the ritual be carried out in a controlled manner without public congregation, with the District Collector supervising.
• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is at liberty to impose conditions to safeguard the monument during the ritual.

Why It Matters: Madras HC upholds Hindu tradition, orders lamp lighting at Deepathoon, dismissing law-and-order fears.