The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has ruled that non-Hindus who wear religious markers of other faiths and do not affirm reverence for the deity concerned cannot be permitted to enter the premises of Agamic temples. The ruling extends the existing restrictions beyond the flagstaff area of such temples.

Earlier, non-Hindus seeking to proceed beyond the flagstaff were required to affirm their faith in the deity and undertake to follow the temple's customs. The High Court has now extended the restriction to entry into the temple premises, requiring the declaration of reverence to be made in the format prescribed by the temple concerned.

However, the order does not impose an absolute ban on all non-Hindus wearing religious markers of other faiths. The Bench has not expressly clarified whether those continuing to wear such markers would be permitted entry after submitting the prescribed undertaking.

A Division Bench of Justices GR Swaminathan and P Murugan passed the order while allowing a petition seeking enforcement of laws governing temple entry and compliance with Agamic injunctions.

The Bench referred to a video circulating on social media that purportedly showed people wearing skull caps entering the Arunachaleswarar Temple in Tiruvannamalai despite protests from devotees. The judges criticised the temple authorities for remaining "mute spectators" during the incident.

The order also referred to instances involving political figures entering Hindu temples. It noted that Madurai Central MLA Badrudeen Mustafa had entered the Meenakshi Amman Temple after the election, claiming a right to inspect its amenities, and had climbed the temple towers during the Kumbabishekam ceremony. The Bench also referred to a Christian Minister who had entered the Tiruchendur temple without furnishing the required undertaking.

In contrast, the judges referred to Chief Minister Joseph Vijay, who, despite being Christian by faith, worshipped at the Meenakshi Amman Temple after signing an undertaking. The Bench observed that he was not required to convert to Hinduism but was only asked to affirm reverence for the deity, describing the arrangement as an "inclusive approach".

To support its ruling, the Bench relied on the Madras High Court's 1972 decision in Kalyan Dass v. State of Tamil Nadu, which struck down a rule seeking to permit non-Hindus to enter temple premises, as well as its 2024 decision in D. Senthilkumar v. Government of Tamil Nadu.

In the 2024 ruling, the High Court had held that non-Hindus who did not believe in Hinduism should not be permitted beyond the flagstaff. It had, however, allowed entry upon submission of an undertaking affirming faith in the deity and respect for the temple's customs.

The Bench clarified that the present ruling was limited to Agamic temples. It noted that certain places of worship, including the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple and the Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, attract devotees from different religious backgrounds.