Permission denied to hold wedding at Sivan Koil temple in Thoothukudi as bride had ‘Christian’ name

Thoothukudi wedding held outside Sri Sankararameswarar Temple after officials denied permission due to bride's Christian name.

A wedding was conducted in front of the Sri Sankararameswarar Temple in Thoothukudi, popularly known as ‘Sivan Kovil’, on Thursday, March 7, 2024, after Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Department officials denied permission to hold the ceremony inside the shrine, as the bride’s name was Antony Divya.

 K. Kannan of Panaiyoor near Kulathur, and M. Antony Divya of Tharuvaikulam, got engaged recently and their wedding was slated to be held on March 7 at Sri Sankararameswarar Temple.

When the bride’s parents had submitted documents to the temple authorities for the conduct of the wedding at the temple some days earlier, the officials and the priests had told the bride’s father Murugan that the wedding could not be conducted in the temple as the bride has the Christian name ‘Antony’.

 Even though some of the documents submitted by Mr. Murugan showed that Divya was a Hindu, her school certificates reportedly certified her as Christian. The temple authorities had reportedly told the parents that the wedding could be conducted at the temple only if the parents of the bride submitted documents establishing she was a Hindu. However, Mr. Murugan reportedly did not submit these documents.

When the families of the bridegroom Kannan and the bride came to Sri Sankararameswarar Temple on Thursday around 11 a.m. for the wedding, the temple authorities stood their ground.

Eventually, the families conducted the wedding in front of the temple.