CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Friday orally observed that all devotees are equal before God and that temples should avoid special darshan arrangements for VIPs that cause inconvenience and delay to other devotees.
Hearing the petition filed by P Chockalingam (55), president of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Justices GR Swaminathan and V Lakshminarayanan, the court orally remarked, "If I pay extra money, can I even go and hug the deity? Even the President would be the same before God. Why do we need VIP darshan? Everyone is equal before God," the court orally observed.
Additional Advocate General PV Balasubramaniam submitted that payment for darshan is not mandatory and that the fee is collected only to regulate crowd congestion. The Additional Advocate General also sought time to file a counter-affidavit. Accepting the request, the court adjourned the hearing by six weeks.
The petition submitted that across temples, especially large temples, "break darshan", "special darshan" and "VIP darshan" of various kinds have been introduced, but there is no end to the waiting time for common devotees to have darshan of God.
The petitioner is seeking the abolition of special paid tickets and VIP darshan, with exceptions for special free darshan for Jeeyars, senior citizens, differently abled persons, newly married couples, pregnant women, and devotees performing Thee Medhi. He has also sought a direction to all temples under the HR&CE Department to provide wheelchairs in every temple for senior citizens.