Nagapattinam sources have stated that in a significant move towards finding an amicable solution to the crisis, caste Hindus of Kallimedu village in Nagapattinam district seem to be inclined to consider the demand of Dalits to host mandagapadi for a day as part of Sri Badrakaliamman temple.
Meanwhile the Nagapattinam Collector S. Palanisamy had clamped a ban on conducting the seven-day annual Aadi festival of the temple, scheduled to begin on August 8th, as tripartite talks failed to break the deadlock over the right claimed by Dalits of Pazhag Kallimedu to host mandagapadi for a day.
After the Collector banned the festival, which is said to have never been disrupted over several decades, both caste Hindus and the Dalits held a few rounds of formal and informal consultations in their respective hamlets.
Sivasubramanian. A, one of the members of the caste Hindu group has told that a section of them had felt the need to find a solution to conduct the festival as per the schedule by taking Dalits on board. Consultations were on to find a consensus on arriving at a solution.
