The famous car festival of Sri Periyanayaki Ambika Sametha Swarnamutheeswarar Temple concluded peacefully here on Sunday, marked by harmony as people from all communities joined hands to pull the ‘vadam’.

Amidst tight police security monitored by senior police officials, the temple car, which started at around 7:45 a.m., after passing through the main thoroughfares, returned to its position at 8:42 a.m.

The Kandadevi temple car festival—the centerpiece of the annual ‘Aani’ celebrations—became a subject of intense dispute in 1998 when members of the Scheduled Caste communities asserted their right to pull the chariot. Although the procession was held once under tight security in 2006, the tradition was suspended yet again and had remained halted ever since.

Although the temple’s kumbabhishekam took place in 2012, the car festival remained stalled as officials cited the chariot’s poor condition and need for refurbishment. The issue resurfaced in 2020 when Maha. Chidambaram filed a petition with the Madurai Bench of the High Court. However, just as the court ordered a trial run of the refurbished chariot, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic halted the plans yet again.

Following the construction of a new temple car and its successful trial run on February 11, 2024, the local administration granted permission to the Sivaganga Devasthanam to proceed with the annual festivities.

Tamil Nadu Minister for Minerals and Mines T.K. Prabhu, South Zone IG Vijendra Bidari, DIGs Manivannan and Moorthy, and SPs R. Sivaprasad, Raveendrakumar Gupta, Srinivasa Perumal, Athiveera Pandiyan, and Pandiarajan, among others were present during the event.

As about 3,000 police personnel were deployed, the entire event was monitored and controlled by the police, he noted.

Special poojas were performed to the urchavars at early morning and the deities, Piriyavidai and Swarnamurtheeswarar were taken on the big car, while Periya Nayaki and Ambika were accompanied in the supplementing car with Vinayagar, Murugan and Chandeekeswarar deities as well.