In a dramatic escalation of the Thirupparankundram temple lamp controversy, lawmakers from Tamil Nadu's ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) are set to table a motion in Parliament to impeach Justice GR Swaminathan of the Madras High Court, sources confirmed to NDTV on Monday afternoon. The move comes in direct response to the judge's recent orders directing the lighting of the Karthigai Deepam festival lamp on an ancient stone pillar, known as 'Deepathoon,' located halfway up the hill near a 14th-century dargah, rather than the traditional lower pillar at the foot of the hill. This sixth-century Subramaniaswamy temple site, revered in Hindu tradition, has long been a symbol of interfaith harmony, with the shared hill hosting both the temple and the dargah, making the ritual a sensitive flashpoint.

The dispute ignited when petitioner Rama Ravikumar, a Hindu activist, approached the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court seeking permission to revive the practice of lighting the lamp on the upper pillar, arguing it was temple property and a longstanding Tamil tradition. Justice Swaminathan, in his December 1 order, overturned the temple administration's decision to restrict the ritual to the Uchi Pillayar mandapam, emphasizing the need for the temple to assert possession over its historical assets. Despite state government and temple officials' protests citing potential communal tensions—especially with assembly elections looming in less than six months—the judge overruled them on Monday, insisting the upper pillar must be included to uphold religious rights. This reversed a 2017 Madras High Court division bench judgment that had favored the traditional site.

Non-compliance by the temple on December 3, the festival day, when the lamp was lit only at the lower pillar, prompted Justice Swaminathan to initiate contempt proceedings and issue a fresh directive allowing 10 devotees, including the petitioner, to light the lamp on the upper pillar under Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) protection. The order led to chaotic scenes, with hundreds attempting to march up the hill, backed by armed forces, resulting in the imposition of Section 144 prohibitory orders by district authorities to curb large gatherings. The state government appealed to a two-judge bench on December 4, arguing procedural lapses such as insufficient time for appeal and judicial overreach in deploying CISF—a force typically reserved for court security—while alleging the petitioners mobilized crowds to disrupt harmony. The bench, led by Justices G. Jayachandran and K. K. Ramakrishnan, dismissed the appeal, upholding the single-judge order and criticizing the administration for "cocking a snook" at judicial authority.

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The Tamil Nadu government swiftly filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court on December 5, which agreed to hear the matter but has yet to schedule a date, leaving the site under heightened tension. Politically, the episode has intensified accusations against the DMK of an 'anti-Hindu' bias to appease minority voters—a charge the party vehemently denies—while opposition parties like the BJP and AIADMK have seized on it to portray the ruling dispensation as undermining Hindu traditions. On Sunday, Chief Minister MK Stalin countered by accusing the BJP, which has recently re-allied with DMK's arch-rival AIADMK for the upcoming polls, of politicizing religious issues to derail the state's progress. He reaffirmed that the ritual was conducted per tradition without opposing spiritual practices but warned against parties with a "riot mindset" exploiting faith for electoral gains.

The impeachment push, reportedly backed by DMK allies including the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), whose leader Thol Thirumavalavan has publicly demanded Justice Swaminathan's removal for "abusing his position to disrupt peace," marks a rare confrontation between the executive and judiciary in the state. Critics, including BJP state president Nainar Nagenthran—who was briefly detained amid the unrest—have decried it as an assault on judicial independence, likening the site to an "Ayodhya of the South" and vowing electoral repercussions for the DMK in 2026. As the Supreme Court deliberates, the incident underscores the fragile interplay of religion, law, and politics in Tamil Nadu's diverse landscape, with both sides urging restraint to preserve communal amity.

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