On August 8, 2014, on the north car street (Rath veedhi) of an ancient Shiva temple at Thiruvarankulam in Pudukottai district, a mosque was inaugurated and a namaz offered. The location of the mosque is a blatant intrusion into the religious sentiments of the public. On August 13, a protest petition was submitted to the Grama Sabha by the association of rath pullers of the temple objecting to the presence of mosque right on the route of the temple rath. The petition pointed out that a building which climbed to be a community hall has now become a mosque causing tension in the area. Later a meeting of Vishwa Hindu Parishad decided to organize struggles for the demolition of the controversial mosque, if the sentiments of the people are not respected.
