People should know the truth about Makara Jythoti: HC

Mtoday news

Kochi, Jan 26 : In the backdrop of the Pulmedu tragedy which claimed lives of 102 sabarimala pilgrims, Kerala High court today asked the Tranvacore Devaswom Board (TDB) which manages the hill shrine of Lord Ayyappa, if ’Makara Jythoti’ (celestial light) was man made.

 

In the backdrop of the Pulmedu tragedy which claimed lives of 102 sabarimala pilgrims, Kerala High court today asked the Tranvacore Devaswom Board (TDB) which manages the hill shrine of Lord Ayyappa, if ’Makara Jythoti’ (celestial light) was man made.

This question was put to the TDB Senior counsel T G Paraneshwar Nair by a division bench comprising justice Thothathil B Radhakrishnan and justice P S Gopinath when reports filed by Kerala DGP, Forest department and TDB on the Pulmedu tragedy which claimed 102 lives came up before it.
The tragedy had occurred as large number of devotees were returning after witnessing the ’Makara Jyothi’ on Jan 14 at Pulmedu in Idukki district.

The TDB counsel said ’Makara Jyothi’ includes a celestial star which is considered to be divine. Board has not given any publicity that the it was ’divine’, he stated.

The bench then said ’People should know what is what’. Court orally asked the TDB to clarify this aspect. There is a heavy rush of pilgrims from various parts of the country to witness the ’Makara Jyhothi’.

Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan today said the Government was not going to probe whether it was a divine phenomenon or man-lit exercise as essentially the whole issue was a matter of faith for millions.

"The Government is neither going to consult astrologers nor materialist scientists to ascertain the veracity of Makarajothi, which millions believe as divine and throng the temple with intense wish to sight it", he said.

Traditionally, it is held in high reverence by believers as a divinine phenomenon but rationalists have for long dubbed it as a man-lit fire arranged with by the temple authorities and the government agencies to bluff the devotees.

The debate over the matter has re-surfaced in the wake of the stampede at Pullumedu last week in which 102 devotees returning after ’makarasjoyti’ darshan were killed.

Interestingly, a member of the family of high priests of Sabarimala, Rahul Eswar, appeared on the scene saying that it fire appearing abover is man-lit while what the actual ’makarajyhti’ is a bright star that ascends on the skies on the occasion of makarasamkramam