Travancore devaswom board staff should approach high court if they have plaints regarding Sabarimala duty, says court
Travancore devaswom board
(TDB) employees have any grievance regarding their deployment on special duty at Sabarimala during the
Mandala-Makaravilakku festival
seasons or 'Masapoojas', they must approach the high court for relief.A division bench comprising Justices Anil K Narendran and S Muralee Krishna issued the directive while considering a suo motu petition initiated by the high court in the Sabarimala matter.
The issue arose from a report submitted by the devaswom ombudsman, which stated that a complaint had been received regarding the deployment of devaswom employees on special duty at Sabarimala during the Mandala-Makaravilakku festival. Certain employees had approached the ombudsman seeking the formulation of guidelines for such deployment.While the division bench was considering the petition, the TDB submitted that the deployment of employees on special duty at Sabarimala during the festival season is carried out strictly following the directions issued by high court in 2022. In that directive, the court had noted that the reluctance shown by board employees to report for special duty at Sabarimala Sannidhanam, Pamba and Nilakkal during the Mandala-Makaravilakku season cannot be taken lightly. It was further stated that employees who fail to report for special duty — except on genuine medical grounds or due to the ongoing festival in their temple — should face appropriate disciplinary proceedings.By disposing of the suo motu petition based on the ombudsman's report, the bench reiterated that devaswom employees cannot approach the ombudsman with complaints about the absence of guidelines for deployment on special duty at Sabarimala, as such matters are strictly governed by the directives of the court.
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