The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday welcomed the Tamil Nadu High Court’s Division Bench order allowing the Deepam ritual at the Thiruparankundram Hills in Madurai, and accused the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and its allies of attacking Sanatana Dharma and indulging in appeasement politics.
At a press conference, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said “the DMK and the Congress are unable to digest that Hindu Dharma has won and that faith has prevailed, and their appeasement politics is forcing them to go to the Supreme Court.”
Asserting that the verdict exposed an “anti-Hindu” mindset, the Union Minister hailed the court order as justice for devotees of the ancient temple and a reaffirmation of religious freedom. He alleged that the DMK and its alliance partners attempted to intimidate the judiciary through appeals and impeachment motions.
Mr. Goyal alleged that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, his son Udhayanidhi Stalin, and other senior DMK leaders consistently “berated, derided, and attacked Sanatana Dharma,” including on September 2, 2023, when Mr. Udhayanidhi demanded “the eradication of Sanatana Dharma itself.”
Noting that devotees approached the court after they were not allowed to carry out the tradition of lighting the lamp, he said Justice G.R. Swaminathan of the Madurai Bench permitted it through his judgment on December 1, 2025.
Mr. Goyal described the State government’s move to appeal against the order as unfortunate, saying it reflected an “anti-Hindu” mindset and bias against Sanatana Dharma. He said the impeachment motion against Justice Swaminathan, submitted by MPs of the INDIA bloc — including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party leaders Akhilesh Yadav, NCP (Sharad Pawar)’s Supriya Sule, Arvind Sawant of Shiv Sena (UBT), and senior DMK leaders, — showed the same mentality.
Stating that an “imaginary ghost” about law and order had been created by State authorities but debunked by the High Court, he alleged the DMK and its allies indulged in appeasement politics, “trying to curry favour from the community which has a small ‘dargah’ there and which opposed the centuries-old practice of Deepastham”.
He further alleged the DMK and its alliance partners might “themselves sponsor a disturbance to support their anti-Hindu agenda”. When court orders do not suit them, they attack the judiciary, move impeachment motions, and cast aspersions on judges while claiming to uphold the Constitution, he said, adding that when the Election Commission did not give a favourable judgment, they went after it.
Mr. Goyal said the Madurai episode was a “wake-up call” for people across the country that they “must protect themselves from this kind of thinking of the INDIA bloc…”.
Published – January 06, 2026 08:20 pm IST
