JUDGMENT :

R. SURESH KUMAR, J.

Prayer: Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying for issuance of Writ of Mandamus directing the first respondent to handover the Arulmigu Vishaleshwarar Statue, Arulmigu Vinayaga Statue, Arulmigu Astharayar Statue, Arulmigu Pradhosa Nayagar Statue with Prabhas to the petitioner for conducting poojas in the temple.

1. The prayer sought for herein is for a Writ of Mandamus directing the first respondent to handover the Arulmigu Vishaleshwarar Statue, Arulmigu Vinayaga Statue, Arulmigu Astharayar Statue, Arulmigu Pradhosa Nayagar Statue with Prabhas to the petitioner for conducting poojas in the temple.

2. That the petitioner claims to be the Trust called Sri. Vadavalli Sametha Visalessvara Swami Arakattalai and it also claimed that, it had been in the helm of affairs to administer the Temple called Sri. Vadavalli Sametha Visalessvara Swamigal Temple. From 1996 onwards, the Temple Management has been taken over directly by the HR&CE Department and a fit person also had been appointed. Since then, the Temple has been in the administration and control of the fit person.

3. While so, according to the petitioner, during the administration of the fit person, out of the five impon statues of the Temple, one statue has been stolen. Though initially the idol could not be retrieved subsequently with the great efforts taken by the Temple authorities as well as Police concerned, the idol was recovered and has been handed over to the concerned Judicial Magistrate Court, Pallipattu and the said idol has already been brought to the Temple concerned, where the regular poojas has been performed.

4. In that context, in order to save and protect the remaining four idols made out of impon, the HR&CE Department decided to keep these idols in the strong room available in the first respondent Temple with an arrangement that, those idols would be again brought back to the Temple concerned at the time of Urchavam and after completing the Urchavam, it will be taken back to the strong room of the first respondent Temple.

5. As per these arrangements, every year, at the time of Urchavam, these four idols which are kept at the strong room of the first respondent Temple are taken out and kept at the Temple concerned and after Urchavam, it has been brought back once again to the strong room of the first respondent Temple.

6. In this context, it is the grievance of the petitioner that, now not only the petitioner's Trust members, but the general public and devotees of the Village and nearby places want to worship the God, i.e. idols, therefore, those idols can be brought back and kept permanently at the Temple concerned, so that, the devotees can worship the God as they desired. Therefore, in order to get back the idols to keep it permanently at the Temple concerned, though representation had been given in the earlier years, since the same has not been considered, the petitioner had given further representation on 08.08.2020 in detail to the respondents to bring back the idols to keep it in the Temple concerned for continuous worshiping. Since the said representation also has not been considered, the petitioner has moved the present Writ Petition.

7. Reiterating the aforestated, the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that, though the petitioner had been the trusteeship or administration of the Temple concerned till 1996 thereafter, the Temple administration has been taken over by the HR&CE Department and a fit person also was appointed. Only during their period, the one idol was stolen. Therefore, if at all, there is any responsibility to be fixed, it should be fixed only on the fit person or the concerned officials of the HR&CE Department. However, insofar as the petitioner Trust is concerned as well as the general public and devotees are concerned, they are only concerned about the idols to be brought back to the Temple concerned for continuous worshiping. Therefore, only for the