Today India's Supreme Court will hear arguments in a controversy over a statue of E.V. Ramasami Naicker, known as Periyar, that was put up in front of Sri Ranganathaswamy Hindu Temple in Srirangam, a small town in southern India. (Background from News Today.) A number of court cases have been filed to prevent the statue from being dedicated, and the statue was vandalized in early December. (India eNews.) Periyar, who died in 1973, was an atheist, anti-Hindu social reformer who founded the Dravidar Kazhagam, a radical party that, among other things, wanted to eliminate "untouchability".
A report yesterday from News Today says that the Supreme court arguments today focus on a request to have the statue covered pending a hearing on the underlying dispute scheduled in the Madras High Court. The controversial statue carries an inscription (quoting Periyar) that reads: "One who worships god is a barbarian. One who preaches about god is an idiot and one who professes any religion is a fraud." The suit alleges that allowing the statue to remain near the temple would infringe Constitutionally protected freedom of religion. The suit argues that it is the duty of the State to protect residents from injury or insult to their religious sentiments.
