TDB withdraws from Vallasadya amid protests, Palliyoda Seva Sangham to continue paid feast

The Hindu

02-08-2025

The controversy surrounding the conduct of Vallasadya, a ritualistic feast offered at the Aranmula Sree Parthasarathy temple, has come to a close for the time being with the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) withdrawing its decision to organise the event through its own booking system.
Confirming the move, TDB president P.S. Prasanth said that all bookings made through the board for the feast to be held on Sunday had been cancelled with immediate effect. 'As the authority responsible for administering the temple, the board does not wish to turn Aranmula into a site of discord. We have therefore decided to cancel the programme,' he said.
Meanwhile, the Palliyoda Seva Sangham (PSS) will proceed with its paid feast for participants of the KSRTC Budget Tourism Cell's package tours.'Due to limited seat availability, online booking for the special pass (paid sadya) has been suspended for this month. Bookings for September will begin by mid-August,' informed K.V. Sambadevan, president of the PSS, in a statement.
Strong protests
The board's earlier decision to conduct Vallasadya within the temple premises without involving the traditional Palliyodams and while collecting money from devotees had sparked strong protests from the PSS. Tensions escalated when members of the PSS staged a protest inside the temple as guests under the TDB's scheme began arriving.
A last-ditch effort by the devaswom board to hold a conciliatory meeting on Friday also failed, after the PSS boycotted the talks citing that some of their representatives were denied entry. The board, however, maintained that it had not barred anyone, but merely asked to restrict participation to the permitted number of delegates.
'We had already accepted bookings for Sunday and requested the PSS to accommodate our guests at the auditorium outside the temple for one last time,' said a board official. 'However, the PSS was unwilling to relent. To avoid any disturbances inside the temple, the board has decided to cancel the package altogether,' he added.
Grand feast
Vallasadya is a revered tradition in Aranmula, wherein a grand feast is offered to Lord Parthasarathy and served ceremonially to the oarsmen of Palliyodams, ornate snake boats that arrive from various villages along the Pampa river. The oarsmen are ritually welcomed at the temple ghats and then led inside for the feast.
Currently, devotees wishing to sponsor a Vallasadya must do so through the PSS office after obtaining approval from one of the 52 Palliyodams participating in the tradition.