A lawyer representing the Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman Temple committee has indicated that Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) is more involved in the quandary over the site than it is letting on.
Lawyers for Liberty co-founder N Surendran said that DBKL appeared to suggest that the government had nothing to do with the situation due to the land being privately owned.
However, he contested that the temple was under threat because of city hall's past actions.
Specifically, he said that in 2008, DBKL ordered the temple - which was built in 1893 - to relocate from its original site a few meters away to the plot where it currently stands.
Then in 2014, DBKL sold the land - allegedly without the knowledge of the temple committee.
”The government has a duty to resolve the matter because it was they who sold the land to a private company back in 2014.
”So to blame the temple committee in any way would be completely wrong,” said Surendran during a press conference at LFL’s office in Petaling Jaya.
“This also disregards the historical development of how places of worship were built within communities that were working hard to build this country decades and decades ago.
“That is how the temple ended up where it is and in this predicament now,” he said.
Uninformed
Temple committee vice-chief Raj Mohan Pillai reiterated they were not informed of the 2014 sale until two years later when the owner and DBKL first attempted another relocation.
”This is extremely unfair to us and the larger Indian community in the Masjid India area, who are visitors and devotees of this temple.
“This temple also serves as a cultural centre in the Masjid India area with weekly classes for dance (Bharatanatyam) and singing (Sangetham), as well as Thevaram and yoga sessions for both children and adults,” he said.
“If this temple is removed from the area or demolished, it will erase the identity of the multicultural community in the Masjid India area,” Raj added.
The land’s current owner, Jakel Group, plans to build a mosque on the site, sparking fears that the temple and its 130-year heritage would be demolished.
However, both DBKL and Jakel today assured that there would be no demolition until the temple is relocated. - Mkini
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