Atheists, their Control and Crimes on Temples

In the aftermath of the daring robbery in the Kapaleeshwarar Temple, Mylapore, Chennai, the City Police Commissioner ordered for a '420 Patrolling Beat' the same night across the city and took in to custody hundreds of persons. Of these, 50 were rowdies, 150 were history-sheeters and 50 were warrant-pending accused persons. Most of these culprits are in their prime youth. Two separate police teams are investigating the Mylapore theft case.

In general, the 'Law & Order' situation in the state is not up to the satisfaction of the people. While there is a spurt in the LTTE activities, the activities of 'Tamil Extremists' and Naxalites with Maoist connection is also on the increase. Apart from these, thefts, robberies and chain snatching have become the order of the day. Political murders and murders due to intra-gang rivalries are also occurring at regular intervals. Among all these crimes, regularly happening temple related crimes have caused great concern in the minds of the people, particularly the millions of devoted Hindus.

With the advent of the DMK government, the crime graph is soaring. Let us have a glimpse at the chronology of Temple related crimes in the last two years, as per media reports, neatly compiled by Social Scientist / Columnist Vedam Vedaprakash: -

• July 31, 2006: - Women devotees in Koyambedu, have complained that the temples in the area have become haven for drunkards in the night times.

• August 28, 2006: - A 24 years old youth, who was arrested in a theft case, confessed that he used to enjoy life with small time actresses with the money he looted from temples.

• May 06, 2007: - When Kiramangalam police arrested a youth Karunakaran, he confessed that he used to steal from temples regularly to buy liquor.
  

• July 30, 2007: - Many thieves confessed that they used to enjoy life with booze and whores from the money they have looted from temples. They have also said that the police do not take serious action against them and it is alleged that the police take bribes from habitual offenders and leave them unpunished.

• September 23, 2007: - The watchmen at the famous Sri Madhura Kaaliamman Temple, Thiruvachur were murdered and the hundial was broken open and the money was looted.

• October 26, 2007: - The government reported that there has been a sudden spurt in temple related crimes and gave a figure of 60 such cases in a span of six to eight months.

• November 26, 2007: - The people of 'Malaikovil' village near Coimbatore complained that the 'Sapthamatrika' Deity worshipped by them had been broken.

• November 26, 2007: - The 'Golden Lizard' in the famous Sri Varadarajar Temple, Kanchipuram was found damaged.

• November 29, 2007: - Highly valued bronze Deities were stolen from Agneswarar Temple, northern bank of Tamraparni River at Rajavallipuram in Thirunelveli.

• December 12, 2007: - An arrested youth made a startling revelation that a well-networked gang is operating in the state and that they adopt a sophisticated method of breaking the hundials and looting the money. The HR & CE Department had recently contracted a private company for installation of unique type of Hundials in Temples. It is believed that the habitual offenders belonging to the network of gangs have learned to break those supposedly secured hundials also.

• December 28, 2007: - An IOC official was arrested for his involvement in the theft of valuable bronze idols in Thirunelveli.

• February 02, 2008: - Huge cash was looted from five temples on the same day in Thirukkovilur in Villupuram District. The affected temples are, Erattai Vinayakar Koil on the banks of a lake, Gangai Amman Koil, North Street, Mariamman Koil, South Street, Vinayakar Koil and Ayyanar Appan Koil, oposite to Thirukkovilur Arts and Science College.

What has been reported is only the tip of the iceberg. There are many thefts and robberies, which go unreported. In many places, there seems to be a nexus between the cops and the thieves. There are a few places, where complaints are not registered with the police and a few more places where the police have failed in finding the culprits or have not shown interests in investigation. We get the following inferences from analysing the available reports.

• Most of the culprits are in their prime youth and they have also taken to atheistic ideologies.

• They are driven by immoral attitude with an aim of making fast buck to enjoy life with wine, women and other luxuries like Motorcycles and Mobile phones.

• Their minds are so corrupted with violent and inhuman thoughts that make them to even commit heinous crimes like murdering watchmen and priests to achieve their task.

• Most of them belong to Dravidian and Tamil-separatist movements and most of them are driven by such ideologies and atheistic and anti-Hindu propaganda, which have spoilt their psyche.

• The habitual thieves operate like organized gangs forming a clean network through out the state, some even at inter-state level. These gangs have an unholy nexus with the temple staff and lower rung policemen.

Tamil Nadu is a state, which has been ruled (nay, ruined) by Atheistic Dravidian political parties for the last forty years. Most of the Ministers, MLAs and Government officials are atheists. Atheists are controlling the Temples, temple lands, Goshalas and temples' other properties. Majority of the staff posted in HR & CE Department are atheists. They consider temples as their own fiefdoms. They feel that they are not accountable to the devotees on whose contributions the temples are being run and that they need not be responsible for the problems faced by the devotees. They refuse to accept the fact that they are public servants and that they should work with responsibility, for they are being paid for their jobs with the devotees' money. When the Chief Minister, cabinet ministers and the entire Dravidian Assembly speaks ill of Hindus, Hindu Gods & Goddesses, Hindu Religion and Hindu Culture, what else can be expected from those who are working under them? It is quite natural that the anti-social elements get emboldened by such apparent anti-Hindu stand adopted by the government.

There is one and only solution, by which this ruining of temples by atheists could be stopped. That is, the HR & CE Department must be abolished and Temples must be liberated from the control of governments, for the constitution of HR & CE itself is unconstitutional. The temples must be handed over to an organization of Acharyas and Religious Gurus like, say, Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha.

- B.R.Haran.