Will Kanniya be lost?
Will Kanniya be lost?
The Archaeological Department is preparing to carry out excavation work in the area where the Kanniya Venneeruthu Pillayar Temple used to be in Trincomalee. For this, preparatory work has been underway in the area for over a week.
It is learnt that the work has been started while funds have been allocated to the Archaeological Department to carry out excavation work and conduct research in the area. In addition, a huge Buddha statue standing in the area was hastily unveiled and caused great criticism.
In this situation, since the Department of Archaeology is operating as a Buddhist department in the eyes of the Tamil people, there is doubt whether the research will be conducted in a fair manner and therefore the Tamil community and their opinions should be obtained as observers during the work.
The 200-year-old Pillayar Temple owned by the Mariamman Trust, which was built on private land near the Kanniya Venneeruthu spring, was demolished in 2002. During the period when the area was broken up for reconstruction work, the Archaeological Department had identified the area as belonging to the archeologists.
Later, on 29.07.2019, the owner of the land in question and the trustee of the Pillaiyar temple, Gokilaramani, filed a case in the Trincomalee High Court, alleging that attempts were being made to construct a Buddhist temple in the area. And an interim ban was imposed on the construction of a Buddhist temple in the area. 10 perches of land were given to the builder of the Pillaiyar temple in the left corner of the entrance to the Kanniya Venneeruthu spring.
It has also been confirmed by many documents that the Kanniya Venneeruthu spring Pillaiyar temple was a land donated to the Mathadi Mariamman temple by a person who was the commander of the army who flew from 1623-1638.
(Translation by Tamilpriya)
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