Kerala High Court Halts Renovation Of Sri Thirunelli Mahavishnu Temple For 10 Days

The Kerala High Court on Monday restrained the Executive Officer of the Sri Thirunelli Mahavishnu Temple, from proceeding with any renovation works in the Temple for a period of 10 days. 

The incident came to light after certain news reports surfaced stating that the Archaeology Department was being kept in the dark as regards the renovation work being carried out in the temple, and highlighted the necessity to protect the historically significant structures at the temple. 

The petitioner who is a devotee of Sri Thirunelli Mahavishnu Temple in Wayanad, which is a controlled institution under the Malabar Devaswom Board, has thus filed the present writ petition seeking a direction to be issued to the Director of Archaeology to constitute a monitoring committee consisting of archeological experts to monitor the ongoing renovation works in the temple, in order to ensure that no harm is being caused to the archeological value of the temple. 

The Division Bench comprising Justice Anil K. Narendran and Justice P.G. Ajithkumar perused the report of the Director of Archaeology and noted that prior to the filing of the writ petition, the Archaeology Department had visited the temple and served a notice upon the temple authorities to immediately stop all renovation works, which may cause damage to the archaeological and architectural value of the temple.

In such circumstances, the Court deputed Advocate M.R. Arunkumar as the Advocate Commissioner to conduct an inspection of the temple premises on May 28, 2023, at 11.00 A.M. and directed him to submit a report before the Court with photographs of the ongoing renovation works. 

"The remuneration payable to the learned Advocate Commissioner is fixed as Rs.25,000/- (Rupees Twenty five thousand only), which shall be paid by the petitioner before the date of inspection. The learned Senior Government Pleader and also the learned Standing Counsel for Malabar Devaswom Board shall ensure that the concerned officers in the Archaeology Department and also the Malabar Devaswom Board render necessary assistance to the learned Advocate Commissioner at the time of inspection," the Court added. 

The matter has been posted for further consideration on June 2, 2023. 

Case Title: Saleesh V. v. State of Kerala & Ors. 

Click Here To Read/Download The Order