IN THE NAME OF MURUGAN

Behind the BJP-backed spiritual spectacle in Madurai was a clear political project: Hindutva, tailored for Tamil Nadu

- Kavitha Muralidharan

ON JUNE 22, MADURAI PLAYED HOST TO A grand gathering of Lord Murugan's devotees—the Muruga Bhakthargal Maanadu. Organised by the Hindu Munnani, a right-wing outfit closely aligned with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the event featured devotional music, ornate replicas of Murugan's six sacred abodes, or Arupadai Veedu, along with a steady undercurrent of political messaging.

Though billed as a spiritual congregation, few missed the ideological subtext. The BJP, which has long struggled to find resonance in Tamil Nadu, has in recent years attempted to recast the Tamil deity Murugan as a cultural and religious symbol aligned with its Hindutva politics. The Madurai event was the most elaborate iteration of that strategy yet.

In 2020, the BJP had launched the Vel Yatra—a religious procession named after Murugan’s divine spear. Led by then state BJP president L. Murugan, the yatra sought to visit all six Arupadai Veedu and was timed to conclude on December 6, a date loaded with political symbolism: the anniversary of both Babri Masjid's demolition and Dr B.R. Ambedkar's death. The then AIADMK-led government denied permission, but BJP leaders forged ahead, leading to multiple arrests.

RAM MOVEMENT OF THE SOUTH