FLAME OF CONFLICT

The BJP brings out its old playbook to prise open the Dravidian heartland. An ancient Madurai temple becomes ground zero for the rituals of majoritarianism

- By Kavitha Muralidharan

AN AYODHYA IN TAMIL NADU? Unlikely venue, it would seem, but the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seems willing to move mountains in its efforts to reframe the state's cultural landscape through its polarising narrative. Thus, a long-settled dispute over a sacred hill in Madurai has been reopened and shoved back into the spotlight. The Subramaniya Swamy Temple, nestled at the base of the Thirupparankundram Hill, is one of the six sites associated with the veneration of Subramanian or Murugan (as Karthikeya is called here). The Karthigai Deepam festival at this rock-cut cave shrine—or lamp-lighting during the month of Karthika—is a ritual in the ancient Tamil Shaivite tradition referenced as long back as the Sangam texts. But if right-wing groups have their way, it needs to shift venue—moving up that rocky hill.