SLA bars priest, trustees from entering temple

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 October 2004, 13:15 GMT]
Sri Lanka army Sunday refused permission to the priest and trustees of the Nagathambiraan temple in Nagarkoil to enter the place of worship for its annual pongal ceremony. The Nagathambiraan temple of Nagarkoil was taken over by Sri Lanka army in 2000. Permission to hold the annual pongal (cooking of milk rice) was granted to the priest and some trustees by the Sri Lankan military after Liberation Tigers and Colombo signed a cease fire agreement in 2002.

SLA gave no reason for refusing permission to hold annual pongal.

The temple's annual pongal used to draw thousands of devotees from the southeastern coastal parts Jaffna before the SLA garrisoned the Nagarkoil area four years ago.




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