AIADMK, BJP against TN Govt's 'move' to vacate RK mutt

Chennai, Apr 22 (UNI) The Opposition All India Anna DMK (AIADMK) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today opposed the Tamil Nadu Government's alleged directive to the Ramakrishna Mutt to return the Vivekanandar Illam off Marina.

In a statement here, AIADMK General Secretary J Jayalalithaa, reacting to a report in this regard in an English daily, said the DMK Government was in no way justified to ask the Mutt to move out of the premises, named after Swamy Vivekananda, by April 24 to enable the Government to set up a Classical Tamil Centre there.

Instead, the Government could find a new premises for setting up the Centre, she added.

She said the Castle Kernan premises was called Vivekanandar Illam as the spiritual leader had stayed there for nine days in 1897 after attending the Parliament of Religions in Chicago.

She said any move to demolish the Illam to build the Centre amounted to insulting the Ramakrishna Mutt and Swami Vivekananda.

Opposing the move, BJP State President L Ganesan, in a statement here, said as long as the Mutt was using the premises for the purpose for which it was given on lease to it, the Government had no case to get it back.

While Classical Tamil Centre could be set up anywhere in the city, no other place could get the status of Vivekanadar Illam, he said, seeking the intervention of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to drop the alleged move by extending the lease period till 2010.

UNI WS GD SY AS1922