Temple given new land in Masjid India area, just 50m away - Saravanan

Temple given new land in Masjid India area, just 50m away - Saravanan


Published: Mar 25, 2025 4:53 PM
Updated: 8:36 PM


Summary

• DBKL agrees to relocate the Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman temple about 50m from its current site, with 4,000 square feet of land permanently gazetted for it.

• Temple representatives are happy because the new location is in Masjid India, says MIC deputy president M Saravanan.

Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has agreed to relocate the Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman temple to a new location located approximately 50m from its current site along Jalan Munshi Abdullah, off Jalan Masjid India.

MIC deputy president M Saravanan said the 4,000 square feet plot of land will be gazetted for the temple on a permanent basis.

“We just agreed that 4,000 square feet given, about 50m away from the current temple, on a permanent basis,” he told Malaysiakini today after a meeting with Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa, KL mayor Maimunah Mohd Sharif, several MPs, and the temple committee.

“It will be gazetted under the temple’s name. The temple people are also very happy because it is within Masjid India now.

“The (current) temple can operate as usual until the new temple is completed,” Saravanan said.

The Tapah MP added that the temple committee and devotees are happy with the settlement reached.

Other MPs present during the meeting were Batu MP P Prabakaran as well as the Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Deputy Minister R Ramanan, who both assisted the temple committee in past engagements with the government.

Prior to the meeting, temple committee secretary Karthik Gunaseelan revealed that the relocation agreement was reached yesterday following negotiations with DBKL.

Earlier, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stressed that the temple was built without permission and must be handled lawfully while ensuring a respectful relocation.

The temple had been moved to its current site by DBKL in 2008, and six years later the land was sold to its current owner, textile company Jakel Group.

Jakel recently announced its plan to build a mosque there, which it will name the Madani Mosque, with Anwar scheduled to officiate its groundbreaking ceremony this Thursday.

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kt remarks:

Okay, not as awful as what happened in Alor Setar in 2020, when Fei-Lo just erased the Sri Madurai Veeran shrine, a century-old Hindu shrine opposite the Alor Setar railway station, and turned that vacant lot into a not-much-needed bicycle park, and frigg any protests.