Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court was informed by Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple authorities that steps were being taken to renovate Pudu Mandapam near the temple in Madurai. A State-level committee comprising experts had inspected Pudu Mandapam and made recommendations, it was submitted.
Taking note of the submission, a Division Bench of Justices R. Subramanian and L. Victoria Gowri closed the public interest litigation petition filed by advocate R. Manibharathi of Madurai. He had sought a direction to the authorities to renovate and inaugurate Pudu Mandapam and include it in the heritage tourism circuit.
The petitioner said that there were around 300 shops inside Pudu Mandapam. In order to develop the place into a heritage site, the officials decided to evict the shops. The eviction of shops in Pudu Mandapam was first considered in 2010 as the functioning of the shops on the premises led to defacement of sculptures and granite pillars. Subsequently, it was decided by the officials to relocate the shops to Kunnathur Chathiram. In 2021, the shops were shifted from Pudu Mandapam to the renovated Kunnathur Chathiram.
He said that thousands of tourists had been visiting Meenakshi temple every day. They also want to visit Pudu Mandapam. On seeing Pudu Mandapam closed, the tourists go back disappointed. The petitioner said he made a detailed representation to the authorities, requesting them to take immediate steps to renovate Pudu Mandapam and declare it as a heritage site.
Published - June 01, 2023 10:44 pm IST
