Overview
- A Division Bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K. V. Jayakumar rejected a petition challenging the 2023 entry of two Christian priests into Adoor Sree Parthasarathy Temple.
- The court said statutes and rules must foster social harmony and should not be used to foment religious discord.
- It identified an apparent inconsistency between the 1965 parent Act, which has no bar on non-Hindu entry, and Rule 3(a) of the Rules, which imposes such a prohibition.
- Without striking down the rule, the court asked the Kerala government to consider revisiting Rule 3(a) after consulting the Travancore Devaswom Board, tantris, religious scholars and other stakeholders.
- The Travancore Devaswom Board told the court the priests, including Dr Zacharias Mar Aprem, entered as invited guests with the tantri’s permission, and an amicus curiae said the restriction is not an essential religious practice.