Sabarimala: Kerala High Court appoints Amicus Curiae in case alleging use of spoiled halal jaggery for preparing prasadam

In response to a plea alleging the use of spoiled halal certified jaggery at the Sabarimala Temple, the Kerala government informed the Kerala High Court on Thursday that the raw materials used in the preparation of nivedyam/ prasadam in the temple undergo strict quality control procedures (SJR Kumar v. Travancore Devaswom Board)..A Division Bench of Justices Anil K Narendran and PG Ajithkumar appointed Advocate N Raghuraj Menon as amicus curiae to assist in the matter..At the hearing today, Government Pleader (GP) S Rajmohan stated that there are quality checks on raw materials and the finished prasada before the same is distributed to devotees. There are two well equipped laboratories established in and around Sabarimala Temple for the same, he added."Entire process is strictly under the surveillance of safety department. There are two laboratories, one in Pampa and one in Sannidhanam and in both laboratories, qualified persons are appointed. Even when the raw materials are unloaded, testing is conducted in the laboratory and only on being satisfied with the quality of raw materials, it is permitted to be taken to Sannidhanam for preparation of prasada. There also, there are two officers to oversee the affairs and after preparation as well, only upon satisfied of the quality, the prasada is permitted to be taken to the counters", the GP said.A statement to this effect was submitted to the Court while it was hearing a plea seeking directions to immediately stop the use of what was alleged to be "impure halal Jaggery" for the preparation of Nivedyam/prasad at the Sabarimala temple..The plea, filed through advocate Sajith Kumar V, contended that the use of expired or halal certified jaggery is illegal on two fronts:use of spoiled materials would create health hazards to the innocent devotees;use of Halal certified jaggery which is prepared as per the religious practices of another religion in the temple and offering the same to the deity would amount to serious violation of religious customs and rituals followed at the temple from time immemorial..A statement was filed on behalf of the Travancore Devaswom Board clarified that out of the jaggery supplied by the contractor in year 2019-2020 which could not be used on account of Covid-19 restrictions, more than 3.3 lakh kilogram of jaggery was auctioned off to Southern Agrotech India Pvt Ltd, Thrissur for use in preparation of cattle feed.Further, the contract to supply jaggery in 2020-2021 was given to SP Sugar and Agro Pvt. Ltd., a Maharashtra based company which started supply from April 2021 onwards, the Court noted. .Since the counsel for the petitioner indicated he had objections to the statements filed today, the Court allowed him further time to file a counter.The matter will be taken up next on Monday, November 22.