In an important order that comes as good news for devotees and activists who have fought a relentless battle against illegal constructions by the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment (HR & CE) Department, a Division Bench of the Madras High Court has stayed all constructions within and outside the famous Arunachaleswarar Temple at Tiruvannamalai. The judges have also planned to visit the temple next month to equip themselves with the facts and the present situation.
Reacting to the development, temple activist T.R. Ramesh wrote on his X, “All constructions inside and outside the ancient Sri Arunachaleswarar Temple, Tiruvannamalai by the @tnhrcedept — stayed by the Hon’ble Division Bench of the Madras High Court which is hearing temple cases. The @tnhrcedept, which has been controlling this ancient Saivite denominational temple by FRAUD since 13.12.1951, presented a sketch and proposal to construct a Queue Complex and waiting areas for devotees — before the Hon’ble Bench — to be built opposite the Rajagopuram of the temple. This is a place where temple festivals are conducted and where at least 50,000 devotees gather during festivals. Only anti-Hindus and/or stooges of missionaries could come up with such horrible proposals.”
Om Arunachala Siva !
Good news for devotees.
ALL Constructions inside and outside the ancient Sri Arunachaleswarar temple, Tiruvannamalai by the @tnhrcedept – – stayed by Hon'ble Division Bench of Madras High Court which is hearing temple cases.The @tnhrcedept… pic.twitter.com/zSwhBPhjJZ
— trramesh (@trramesh) September 25, 2025
He added: “After they presented the engineer’s drawings and plans to the Hon’ble Bench, I produced photographs which show that they are already constructing a huge queue complex and waiting area inside the ancient temple — in violation of law and judgments of the court. The photos show massive grotesque constructions with huge concrete pillars laid adjacent to the temple’s ancient heritage wall. The Hon’ble Bench, visibly shocked, questioned the @tnhrcedept on the necessity of introducing modern constructions inside the temple.”
After a detailed hearing, the Bench stayed all further constructions inside or outside the temple until the next hearing, which has been fixed for 16.10.2025. The judges also announced their intention to personally inspect the temple, considering its extraordinary heritage value and the urgent need to protect it.
A special Division Bench comprising Justices R. Suresh Kumar and S. Sounthar, designated for hearing temple-related cases, stated on September 25 that they would tentatively visit the Arunachaleswarar Temple on October 5. The actual date of inspection would be notified later by the High Court Registry. The court took this decision while hearing a 2024 writ petition filed by Ramesh, who had challenged a Government Order issued in 2023 for using temple funds to construct a shopping complex or row of shops outside the Rajagopuram (the prime or main temple tower) of the Arunachaleswarar Temple.
During a hearing on August 28, 2025, Special Government Pleader (HR & CE) N.R.R. Arun Natarajan told the Division Bench that the department was reconsidering its proposal to build the shopping complex/row of shops and was instead planning to create other facilities for devotees. On September 11, the court was informed that the department intended to construct a queue complex for devotees visiting the temple for darshan of Lord Shiva. After recording this submission, the judges had directed him to submit a technical report by September 26.
When the hearing resumed on September 25, Ramesh brought to the court’s notice that the HR & CE Department had already begun construction inside the temple complex, even before obtaining the court’s permission, and produced photographs to substantiate his charge.
Following this, the court expressed its intention to visit the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) maintained temple to ascertain the ground reality inside and outside the temple premises. The judges decided to conduct a personal inspection before the next hearing scheduled for October 16 and ordered that all ongoing constructions be halted until further orders. The order is being hailed as a significant success for devotees and temple activists.
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