Rajaraja Varma's Stand Is Not the Official Position of Pandalam Palace: Pandalam Palace Executive Committee
Pathanamthitta: The Pandalam Palace Executive Committee has rejected the stand taken by Pandalam Palace family member Rajaraja Varma regarding the appointment of the Sabarimala Tantri (chief priest), clarifying that his views do not represent the official position of the Pandalam Palace.
In a press release, the Executive Committee stated that Rajaraja Varma is only one among nearly 300 members of the royal family and that his remarks are purely personal opinions. The statement was jointly issued by Executive Committee Secretary Suresh Varma and President Pradeep Kumar.
The committee further said that the official stand of the Pandalam Palace can only be announced by the Valiya Thampuran (senior head of the royal family) and the Pandalam Palace Executive Committee.
Earlier, Rajaraja Varma had maintained that the Travancore Devaswom Board has the legal authority to appoint or remove the Tantri. He had also written to Devaswom Minister K. Muraleedharan, stating that the Board has the power to appoint any qualified person as Tantri.
In his letter, Rajaraja Varma argued that there is no legal obstacle to appointing or removing a Tantri. He said that if there is misuse of authority, the hereditary Karanma status can be revoked. He also claimed that the Devaswom Board is empowered to appoint more than one Tantri if required.
He further stated that the Tantri does not hold the status of a spiritual father of the deity at the Sabarimala temple. According to him, even if the idol is damaged, its divine presence (Chaitanyam) is not lost, and a Tantri who performs a re-consecration (Punarprathishta) would not automatically acquire such a status.
Rajaraja Varma also asserted that ownership of the Sabarimala temple rests with the Pandalam Palace, while the government only functions as the trustee. He claimed that the temple's ownership has never been transferred to the government and cited the settlement register as stating that the government cannot take over the temple.
Meanwhile, the Travancore Devaswom Board has informed that Kandararu Brahmadathan, son of the current Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru, can be considered as the next Sabarimala Tantri. Sources indicate that the Board is likely to accept Rajeevaru's request and that a majority of Board members support Brahmadathan's appointment.
The Board is expected to inform the Kerala High Court of its decision while stating that there is no need to replace the Thazhamon family as the hereditary Tantri family. The final decision on the matter will be taken by the Devaswom Bench of the Kerala High Court.
Kandararu Rajeevaru had earlier submitted a letter to the Travancore Devaswom Board requesting to be relieved from the post of Sabarimala Tantri and asking that his son, Kandararu Brahmadathan, be considered as his successor.