Chennai: Even as BJP MP Tarun Vijay moved a private member bill in the Rajya Sabha enabling trained members of the Valmiki community to become temple priests, the 200-odd students who underwent archaka (priest) training course offered by the Tamil Nadu government in 2007-08 are awaiting the Supreme Court order, to be delivered by July-end, on a petition challenging the move.
On Friday, Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Vijay introduced a private member bill, which proposes that well-trained Valmiki children be made temple priests. The bill is slated for discussion on Monday. Mr Vijay had introduced a similar bill in 2012, but that was withdrawn after strong opposition from some MPs.
Stating that he was unaware of legal hurdles faced by the Tamil Nadu government to remove caste barriers in making members of all communities temple priests, Mr Vijay said if people from Valmiki community are allowed to become priests, naturally, all other community people will be covered. “Valmiki community is at the bottom of the lower caste list. If the lowest of lowest are made legally eligible to become priests, then, naturally, everyone can,” he told Deccan Chronicle.
Tamil Nadu, which has a long history of social reform, has been facing legal hurdles in its efforts to end Brahmins’ monopoly to become temple priests. The then DMK government issued a government order in May 2006 declaring that suitably trained and qualified Hindus, without “discrimination of caste, creed, custom or usage” were to be appointed as archakas in government-administered temples.
In May 2007, the HR&CE set up six archaka training centres in major Saivite and Vaishnavite shrines, which offered a year-long certificate course in agama sastras. As many as 207 students, including three Brahmins, enrolled and underwent the training but the apex court order stayed appointments of non-Brahmins as temple priests.
Mr V. Ranganathan, state president of the Archakar Payirchi Pettra Mannavargal Sangam, who had impleaded in the SC case, said after hearing the arguments in the eight-year-old case, the SC has reserved orders and the judgment is expected by July — immediately after the vacation. “We are hopeful of getting the verdict in our favour,” he said.
On the BJP MP’s attempt to move a bill, he said he should amend the bill to enable all non-Brahmin communities to become temple priests.
Mr Shiva Shankar, who underwent priest training in Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam, has been working as a temple priest in a Vaishnavite temple, near Tiruchy. “As long as people are not aware of my caste, they interact with me freely in the temple. When they come to know I am a Dalit, some people become indifferent,” he complained.
He said there is a tendency among people to believe Brahmin priests even if they are not fully trained or qualified. Efforts to contact HR&CE officials proved futile.
