Hindu Munnani Petitions Supreme Court To Reclaim Vajragiri Hill Housing Ancient Shiva Temple From Encroaching Christian Missionaries In Tamil Nadu
The Hindu Munnani has filed a petition in Supreme Court to reclaim the Vajragiri Hill, which houses the 1500 year old ancient Shiva Temple occupied illegally by Christian missionaries who foxily manoeuvre to prevent Hindus from gaining access to the temple. The Christian missionaries have occupied illegally the entire Vajragiri Hill in the Acharapakkam area of Chengalpattu in Tamil Nadu, barely 95 kms from Chennai. They have encroached over 60 acres of land all over the Hill and claim to have 99 years lease of forest land!
The Christian missionary cabal has so viciously defaced the entire mountain with illegal construction, huge crosses, statues of Mary and even vandalized huge rocks by painting “Long Live Mary” on it which is visible from far away. The vandalism is so severe that one cannot even see or know that there is an ancient 1500 year old Shiva Temple atop the Hill. An old dilapidated structure can be seen on top of the hill, which represents the mauling of the Hindu history, tradition, culture and the very faith by Christian missionaries.
The temple is dedicated to Pasupatiswarar Udanurai Maragathambikai Shiva Temple, which was built over 1500 years ago. It is in ruins now and crumbling. Two access routes was made by our ancestors to the temple several centuries ago. The temple nestled atop the mountain could be reached by a flight of steep steps one way and by a vehicular path behind the hill.
But the Christian missionaries have now completely occupied the entire Vajragiri Hill by building a huge church called the ‘Malai Mata Arulthalam’ at the top and bottom of the hill and placed several crosses across the hill. It is interesting to note that Mary is passed off as ‘Mata’ a name reverentially used for all female Hindu deities. This is done purposefully to fox the gullible poor Hindus to adopt Christianity. These illegal constructions began from 1960s.
The History Of Encroachment By Christian Missionaries On Vajragiri Hill
In 1965, a Catholic Pastor named Puspam Adigalar a co-founder of Roman Catholic Church of St. Joseph church in Acharapakam installed a statue of Mary on the hill. No construction was done on the hill till 2004.
In 2004, pastor Bakiya Regis started constructing Church and other buildings around the statue. Sweeping areas across the hill were encroached by the Christian missionaries on forest and government land. Government owned pasture land used by cattle rearers were encroached by the evangelists.
The Church began ‘New Moon Worship’ programs from 2005 on the Hill and started to convert more and more people in the area.
Crumbling Ancient Shiva Temple At Vajragiri Being Swallowed By Missionary Encroachments
The church administration, has slyly constructed a decorative archway at the top of the hill where there is a driveway to the Pashupatinath Temple. As a result of this missionary chicanery, Hindu devotees who visit the temple to get a darshan of Pashupatiswarar have to perforce go through massive decorative archway of the Church. This road is currently barricaded by a barbed wire.
The Hindu devotees made a separate temporary path to the temple, but the wily Christian missionaries who occupy the whole area, dumped rubbish on the path blocking the way to the hill and cutting off access to the Shiva Temple.
Some Hindu youths from the local area tried to rebuild and renovate the crumbling shrine despite facing challenges from the Christian missionary mafia with clout, deep pockets showering crores of rupees buying over everything and bribing their way through in the administration. The youths managed to somehow set up a flashing electric board with words ‘Shiva Shiva’ on it. They also planned to build a new borewell on the hill and even built water tanks.
But the Forest Department which sleeps through the massive illegal construction and defacement by the Christian missionaries, forcibly stopped the Hindu youths from trying to renovate the Temple complex, saying that no construction activity can be carried out on Forest Land owned by the Forest Department.
The Hindus then questioned the Forest Department’s double standards of giving free hand and privileges to Christian missionaries to occupy the entire hill with massive constructions, while restraining Hindus. They were shockingly told that the mountain has been given out on 99 years lease to the Christian missionaries. Hindu organisations like the Hindu Munnani and the local Hindus of Achchirapalli have taken the initiative to reclaim the hill and the Shiva temple from the Christian missionaries and have questioned the illegal lease of forest land.
Protests & Petitions By Hindus Against Encroachment By Christian Missionaries
The protests from local Hindus began to grow against the illegal activities of the Christian missionaries. The Hindus started filing regular complaints with the authorities, the Revenue Department would on every occasion issue a notice perfunctorily to the Christian missionaries and the matter would be later settled, allegedly by bribing the officials.
A RTI application was filed by a person named Raja of Sothupakkam to find out the total area encroached by the Church. The Revenue Department, very shockingly replied that only 4 acres of land was encroached by the Church in Vajragiri Hill. Raja, investigated the matter himself and found that over 60 acres of land has been encroached by the Church. Following this, he also filed a petition in the Madras High Court for removal of the encroachment.
The Hindus of Acharapakkam have raised strong protests against the monopolisation and rabid misappropriation of Vajragiri hill by Christian missionaries which is literally swallowing the ancient Pashupatiswarar Temple on the Hill top. They have made the following demands from the government authorities:
- The removal of the decorative archway built by the Christian missionaries at the entrance and building of a new entrance gate to the Pashupatiswarar Temple.
- To pave the pathway to the Temple atop the Hill.
- The Vajragiri hill belonging to the Pashupatiswarar Temple should be protected from the Christian missionary cabal.
- The rocks of the Vajragiri hill should be saved from vandalism by the Christian missionaries. Immediate action needs to be taken to stop the rocks on the Hill from being broken and sold.
- Christian missionaries should not be allowed to proselytize in the area.
- Action to be taken against the Christian goondas who damaged the electric lights and electric boards installed in the Pashupatiswarar Temple.
- The removal of the barbed fences erected by the Christian missionaries.
- An explanation from the Forest Department for the bizarre claim by the Christian missionaries to have been conferred a lease for 99 years of forest land.
In this context, the Hindu Munnani has filed a petition in the Supreme Court alleging that that the government has illegally given away forest land (about 60 acres) to the Malaimalai Mata Church and demanded that the land be reclaimed by the government by eviction and demolition of illegal Christian structures on the Vajagiri Hill.
The Judge had directed the district administration to carry out proper inspection of the place and file a report on it within 8 weeks. An inquiry was reportedly conducted in this regard on 4th June 2021 on the matter by the Magistate Office of Madurantakam in Chengalpattu district.
It is hoped that the entire holy Vajragiri Hill housing the ancient Pashupatiswarar Temple is cleared of all the massive illegal Churches, Crosses and Mary statutes built by the encroaching Christian mafia.
It is also hoped that the management and control of ancient Hindu Temples is handed over to Hindu devotees to avoid such gross neglect by the authorities, helping the Christian cabal to take over Hindu temples and surrounding holy land.
News input: Kathir News, Vikatan, Mission Kali
Featured Image Source: Kathir News, Vikatan, Mission Kali.
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