Supreme Court requests panel to identify Agamic temples in Tamil Nadu
The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 14, 2025) requested a committee formed by the Madras High Court to identify Agamic temples as against non-Agamic temples in Tamil Nadu in three months.
A Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Rajesh Bindal said once the Agamic temples are identified, status quo must prevail and no appointments of archakars (priests) must be made to them for the time being.
'Whatever the committee identifies as Agamic temples… don't touch it,' Justice Sundresh addressed senior advocate Dushyant Dave and Tamil Nadu Advocate General P.S. Raman.
However, once the identification of Agamic temples are over, the State may go ahead and fill up the existing vacancies for archakars in the non-Agamic temples.
The apex court said the committee headed by former Madras High Court judge Justice M. Chockalingam would conduct the identification exercise. One of its members, M.P. Sathyavel Murugan, against whom objections were raised, would not be part of the committee, the Bench recorded.
The court further directed the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of Tamil Nadu to fill up the existing vacancies of archakars and maniyams (temple workforce) in Rameswaram Ramanathaswamy Temple. Advocate Elephant Rajendran, who represented an intervention highlighting the vacancies in the Rameswaram Temple, said the appointments must be made in accordance with the customs and traditions.
The petitioner, Srirangam Koil Miras Kainkaryaparagal Matrum Athanai Sarntha Koilgalin Miraskainkaryaparargalin Nalasangam, represented by senior advocate Guru Krishnakumar, said Agamic temples were very few in numbers. The petitioners were not concerned with the non-Agamic temples.
Mr. Dave said Agamic temples were the most important temples. Mr. Dave and Mr. Raman argued that the petitioners have even challenged the stipend given to intern archakars. 'We [State] only want them to be trained for their religious duties,' Mr. Dave submitted.
The court scheduled the next hearing in September 2025.
In November 2023, the apex court had refused to vacate or modify its earlier interim order of status quo on priesthood in temples governed by age-old Agamas (post-Vedic scripture conveying ritual knowledge). The status quo order had been passed on the basis of a series of petitions alleging that the Tamil Nadu government was attempting to appoint 'non-believers' as archakars, contrary to the Agamas.
The State had countered that appointments were a secular function entitled to the government. It had maintained that its intention was to have 'Hindus, irrespective of caste and creed, to be trained and qualified in order to be appointed as archakars under the control of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department'.
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