Madras HC: God cannot be summoned by any court
Guwahati: The Madras High Court on Thursday reversed a lower court judgement directing the authorities of a temple in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruppur district to present the temple’s primary idol for verification before the court.
According to the lower court in Kumbakonam, the Moolavar (presiding deity) idol had been stolen, traced, and reinstalled at the shrine of Paramasivan Swamy temple in Siviripalayam,
Justice R Suresh Kumar of the Madras High Court issued an order on Thursday saying that the idol should not be removed and brought before the court since it is God in the eyes of the devotees. The high court stated that God cannot be summoned by the court for inspection or verification as if it were a material thing in a criminal case.
Instead, an advocate commissioner can be dispatched to evaluate the idol without disturbing it or injuring the devotees’ feelings, according to the directive. It said that the advocate commissioner can create a full report and submit it to the appropriate court.
The high court was hearing a writ petition challenging the lower court’s order that the idol be removed from its pedestal and brought before the court.
According to the petitioner, the idol at the old temple was taken, recovered by the police, and shown to the court in question. It was subsequently given to temple officials and reinstalled at the shrine, where it is venerated by several people in accordance with a procedure.
When the lower court ordered temple officials to present the idol in front of it on January 6, and an attempt was made to do so, devotees, including the petitioner, objected strenuously and filed a case in the high court.
After hearing the case on Thursday, the high court stated, “For the stated purpose, the idol does not need to be removed. All parties involved, including the Magistrate [in Kumbakonam], must carry out this order.”